A/N- Thank you for the amazing reviews so far! Hope you guys enjoy this chapter as well! (Also Barbossa is probably my favourite character from the series although I put that down to him being played by Geoffrey Rush who I'm a big fan of).

Chapter 23

"Our journey may have to be delayed momentarily". Captain Barbossa muttered as he had now placed a cloak around his coat. Constance nodded her head and found her new situation to be both bizarre and a tad bit frightening. From what she could gather, there was someone systematically destroying Capatain Barbossa's fleet and she wondered if the Royal English Navy had anything to do with it. Especially since they seemed to be harbouring a large amount of what she could only guess was stolen treasure.

She was told to stay in the Captain's Cabin and to 'not touch anything, ya hear me'. She could just about make out what Captain Barbossa was shouting from down the ship and she swore he was making the ship stop of at port. This was not what Constance had planned and when Barbossa came back in to grab a purse of money she decided to interrogate him.

"Why are you stopping?"

"Me fleet is being destroyed and the dead are walking again. I need to consult with someone to try and salvage me livelihood". He grinned at her although there was fear that flickered in his eyes.

"The dead? Is this in a metaphorical sense or…" She trailed off and was surprised when he came very close to her all of a sudden.

"Do you believe in ghost stories?" He asked back and she shook her head in reply, not feeling comfortable to be in such close contact.

"Well ya better start believing because you are now in one". He snapped at her and she watched as he hobbled away quickly. Her eyes drifted down to his wooden leg and realised that it was not wood after all. In fact, it was made of gold.

"Wait! If this is all true, then who on earth are you going to meet to sort all this out?" She shouted to his retreating figure.

"A sea-witch". He snapped back as though it was obvious and she made eye contact with the annoyed pirate. Although she would be just as annoyed if something was destroying her fleet. He must have seen her cynical expression as he gave a long sigh and as he opened the door he spoke again.

"Come 'ere. Ya can join me if you are refusing to believe me". Constance didn't know what exactly possessed her to follow him but she did. After all, she was still doubting that the dead could rise and didn't believe that sea witches were even a thing.

Before she knew it, she was off the Queen Anne's Revenge and walked with an irate Captain who kept telling her to keep up. They walked through an assortment of alleyways and what not and when an English guard appeared she was about to hide when she felt Barbossa grab her hand.

He didn't say anything and she watched as he paid the officer off who then proceeded to lead them to what she could only describe as a prison. It was dark and the door was large which made opening it a very loud task.

The room that they then entered was not what she expected and even more so was the woman who stood above a cauldron like object. She turned and gave Captain Barbossa a look which said 'really?' and he gave her a warning look whilst letting go of her hand in return. She watched as he walked in the room further than her and gestured for Constance to follow him closely.

The women who she supposed was the sea-witch was the most intriguing human she had ever met. Her appearance was what caught her attention as she had multiple painted or rather tattoo lines and shaped across her face and body. She was dressed in clothes that Constance had never seen before and she felt uncomfortable looking at the young women.

The witch did not seem to care about them both gawping at her as she was carefully filling a small cup up with a thick green liquid. Constance felt sick just looking at it and from the face that Barbossa was making she assumed that he didn't like the look of it either.

"Would you like some?" The witch asked as she gestured to the cup.

"Ah no, not for me thanking ye. This is Constance, she may like some". Captain Barbossa said with a large smile and Constance gave him a dirty look in return.

"I am fine thank you". She replied quietly and the witch shrugged her shoulders and began to drink the thick liquid. The actual act of drinking it made Constance feel worse and she had to look away for a second while the witch continued to drink.

"Constance this is Shansa. She may even help you if you ask nicely". Captain Barbossa said with a smirk.

Shansa didn't seem to care awfully and slowly placed the cup down and gave them both a glance before turning her full attention to the Captain.

"My fleet is being destroyed. I need answers". He said simply and Constance watched as Shansa began to look through a basket of what looked like live animals. She then picked up a crow and both Constance and Barbossa gave each other an odd look as Shansa began to stroke the bird. Next thing they knew, she had snapped the bird's neck and threw it into the flames of the hearth causing Constance to jump back in shock. Constance was beginning to believe that Shansa was either just a very odd women or an actual witch and at the moment she was more inclined to believe the former.

Shansa suddenly turned and looked at the Captain and he stepped back slightly in response.

"The dead have taken command of the sea. They're searching for a girl, a pearl and a sparrow". Shansa said, her eyes glancing over at Constance who felt unnerved by the other woman. "But they may be searching for a different girl than I first thought". Shansa continued thoughtfully whilst looking straight at Constance.

"Jack then". Barbossa sighed with exasperation ignoring the second part of what Shansa had said. Constance had the distinct feeling that the Captain was well acquainted with this Jack person and judging by his response, he assumed that they were not exactly the best of friends.

"You will need his compass". Shansa began and Constance swore that Barbossa rolled his eyes and muttered something along the lines of 'don't we always' under his breath.

"And do ye have any idea of where this compass is?" Barbossa asked with a tired expression as though he was resigned to finding it. But Shansa smirked and from behind her she pulled out a black compass and Constance gasped. She had seen that compass years and years ago when she was upon the pirate ship which kidnapped her. She had not even given it a thought until that day and her reaction was not unnoticed by Barbossa.

"You have seen this before?" He asked surprised as he took it from Shansa.

"Yes… A very long time ago. Why is it so special?" She asked back, wondering if she had missed something.

"It shows what the heart desires". Shansa whispered to her and she suddenly stepped closer to Constance. Constance managed to stay put, not wanting to be pushed back into the baskets of god knows what.

"Captain you should keep her near, the deadd will not hurt this one". Shansa said softly and then stopped staring at Constance. "Now I wish to speak to you privately Captain, if that would be allowed".

Constance looked over at Captain Barbossa who gestured for her to wait outside and she was sure he was looking at her oddly but she tried to ignore it. She was still very confused by what was happening and had no idea why the dead would not want to harm her.

She waited outside and began to think through everything. So far, she had come to the conclusion that this whole dead men walking business was either true or just some complex pirate ghost story. She decided that for the moment she would just go along with it all and she was in fact starting to believe that Shansa was a witch. The compass was also a very intriguing notion and the woman's words rang in her ears. If it did in fact show what the heart wanted the most, then she was sure it would show her to Armando. But when she had last looked at it, it had just circled around as though it was broke. She wondered if she had not known what she truly wanted but shook her head. Constance was about to consider taking the compass when Captain Barbossa returned through the door and told her to walk with him.

"So you really believe that the dead are back?" She asked Barbossa who sighed next to her.

"Ya. Three of my ships have been destroyed and each one has left one man alive. All three men have spoken of the same tale, a tale that does not sit well with myself. Now, you on the other hand look as though you may be of some help afterwards". He said as they walked through the dark alleyways. She watched as rats ran under their feet and she thought the air had gone awfully cold. Perhaps there was some truth in the tales after all.

"Why would that be?" She asked wondering why the dead did not care to hurt her.

"I have an inkling but for now I will keep that to me self. For the meantime, I hope you don't mind a slight detour". He said and Constance began to see the ship up ahead.

"And the compass? Does it really show what the heart desires the most?" She asked hopefully. Barbossa grinned even more than usual and she was slightly put off by his behaviour.

"That it does. In fact, we are counting on it and it just so happens that you will be very helpful". He replied. She didn't like what he said and was more confused by his outburst.

"How can I help?"

"You will just hold onto it and direct us, now stop asking questions". He said as they finally reached the ship again. They were climbing up the steps and had got onboard when she spoke again.

"So what is your plan?" She asked, slightly out of breath from all the walking. Barbossa straightened himself up and despite not wanting to hear her question him anymore, he replied without blinking.

"We are to make a deal with the dead".