Chapter Five

Speaking In Riddles

Let's see, what else don't I own that I've already stated? Advil.

I'm so sorry, you guys! I had to repost this because the site must have had been having an off day. I thought I reposted it with only this chapter...oh well. LOL

Melissa tried to remain calm as she sat on the edge of her bed. She found it hard to breathe and she was getting dizzy. She knew she was giving into her survival instincts by letting herself semi-hyperventilate for a few seconds.

Her head was placed in her palms. Her arms were propped on her legs. She was trying to comprehend what was going on still. She couldn't believe that there was actually a man who claimed to be Jack Sparrow in her room. One of two people were going crazy, and she guessed it was her, since Jack already was crazy.

"Melissa, eh?" Jack said. "It's a nice name. Greek origin. Means bee."

The last thing on Melissa's mind was that her name was of Greek origin. The first thing was the man who said it, however.

"Y'don't look Greek," he said, bending down to examine her face. "They have black hair and olive skin. And you're...not black-haired and olive skinned."

"I know," she said. "I'm Norwegian."

"Norwegians...are those the crazy people with the horn hats and those special long ships?"

She shrugged. "I suppose."

"So then why'd ye're parents name ya a Greek name if you're Norwegian?"

"I don't know," she said, closing her eyes. "They just did."

"So where am I?" Jack asked. "If this isn't the Carribean, and this isn't a strumpet's house, then I'm guessin' I've finally died and this is what Heaven is. Gorgeous women..." he gestured to her, "Woman." He frowned. "Wait...if this was Heaven, there'd be more gorgeous women than just you. It is Heaven that I've landed in a bedroom of a gorgeous woman. I'll take that as a sign from a god any day."

Melissa was appalled. A man who didn't even know her was hitting on her! How dare he! She wished that he would have hit him harder in the nose earlier.

"You're in the United States," Kate said, trying to ignore the comment he just made, despite that she was still wearing her short nightgown that reeked "strumpet" to him. "You know it as the colonies, probably. Except the colonies have gotten bigger and now stretch from the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans."

He frowned. "Y'could just make it simple and say what colony, love."

"It's one that you don't know of yet. Minnesota. It's at the northern boarder of the United States, you see. It's nothing like the Carribean. Look out the window."

Jack looked out the window. There was some grass and a pine tree. "But what about the water and the sand...? And the palm trees?"

"There are none," she said. "I told you it's a lot different. There's grass instead of sand. Pine instead of palm. But we have beaches and lakes still. You have to travel to get to the ocean."

"I told you it's a lot different," he mimicked to himself. "Bloody right it is."

Melissa played with the medallion around her neck. She stood up and walked over to him. "Jack, do–"

"Captain, love. Get that straight before you open that pretty li'l mouth o' your's."

She suppressed a sigh. She felt ridiculous calling him 'Captain' when really he should be the one using formalities. But she would rather them go on first name basis. But this was what he was used to – old fashioned formalities and cockiness.

"Captain, do you know how you got here?" she asked.

"I'm assumin' the Kraken sent me here, however it did. Has to be a fast li'l swimmer, that bugga. Fast walker, too. Why? You an all-knowin' person like Tia?"

"Um...no," Melissa said. She went to the living room to get a map of the United States, then went back to her room and opened it up on her bed. She tucked a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. "Okay, you're – were, sorry – here." She pointed to a group of islands southeast of Cuba. "And this is what you know as the thirteen colonies." A finger ran up and down east coast of the US. "You have New York, Massachusetts, Virginia...I'm sure you're familiar with them. Well, in 1803, Thomas Jefferson, who was President at the time, claimed land from there to the Mississippi River." She dragged her finger to the river on the map. "And we're right about here." She pointed to an area right above the word Minneapolis.

"Minnenpoles?" Jack asked. "Who thought of a name like that?"

"No, Minneapolis. I'm pretty sure it's Indian. Most of the cities in this state are."

"But ya never answered my question, did ya love?"

She frowned. "I don't recall you asking one."

"How did I get here?"

"Um...I think I asked you that. And then you replied–"

"Nope, I'm pretty sure I asked it. You just haven't answered it."

"No I didn't! You said you thought that the Kraken ate you and brought you here which is completely untrue, although I don't know how you got here. So, really, your guess is as good as mine."

He frowned. "I think you imagined it all, love."

Melissa's mouth came open. "What? No, we just had this discussion–"

"Then show me proof that we had said discussion." Jack sat next to her, legs crossed. His dark brown eyes felt like they were boring into her's. She looked away and focused on an angel figuring on her shelf.

"Still waitin'," Jack said.

She sighed. "Whatever. The point is that you and I have to figure out how you got here. Because people just don't pop up like this."

He shrugged. "I dunno. How 'bout I let you know when I have an idea, savvy?"

She turned around and rested her head on the mattress. She felt a headache coming on. She wanted to go upstairs and get some Advil, but felt too lazy and tired already. She knew that stress could make you tired, but it had been only thirty minutes since the stress started. It couldn't be effecting her already, could it? She remembered right before she would start studying for finals, she would get a headache right away. So, really, it had taken a slow amount of time for it to kick in.

"What's that?"

Melissa looked up past her window. "What's what?"

"No, in your bodice," Jack said.

Melissa looked down. "It's silk," she said. "It's soft. I'd rather you not feel it, though."

"No, I know what silk is. I've been to Singapore. That gold thing around your neck and into said bodice."

Melissa didn't know why this man was looking at her chest. No one even bothered to look (that she knew of) since there was none to offer, really. Kate, on the other hand, was a different story.

She pulled a blanket tightly around her upper half. "I'd appreciate it if your eyes went elsewhere."

He chuckled. "And you think your chest was the only thing I was looking at?"

She stood up. "What do you mean?"

"That medallion..." he stepped forward as Kate put the blanket down and took it out of her nightgown.

"What about it?" she asked.

"You don't happen to know where you got it? Family heirloom, perhaps?"

"No...I got it yesterday antique shopping," Melissa said, completely missing the hint that Jack just dropped that she had stolen the medallion.

"Ahh...and an undead pirate by the name of Barbossa wouldn't have sold it to you, would he?"

She frowned. "No, it was an old woman. She looked normal to me."

Jack saw the blood on it. "I think I may know how exactly I got here, love."

Melissa's Blog Entry

I don't get it. It's like he's speaking riddles to me! I don't get it! He said something about Barbossa and knowing how he got here. Now he's complaining that his cereal is cold. Gosh, cereal is supposed to be cold! Anyways, back on topic. The woman who gave me the medallion was not Barbossa. He had those yellow fingernails and a beard and was tall. The woman had healthy nails, no beard, and short. I don't understand why he just doesn't come out and say it! Is he trying out a new round of Give Melissa A Headache? Now he's complaining that the cereal's cold again. He apparently doesn't understand that cereal is not warmed up...More later.

Love,

Melissa Rose