And she's back with another chapter! Reviews are a bit slack, guys. Be nice, pleeeeeeeeeease? More reviews, faster updates, have we got a deal?
In any case, here's chapter two. Enjoy :)
My Dungeon Boy! Chapter Two:
"So could you send for him please?" Nami begged one of the servants.
It was late in the night and she was in her nighting gown with a servant at her feet.
"…It would be suicide Princess!" the servant wined. "Waking him in the middle of the night…isn't the smartest idea."
"Do it!" she yelled losing her patience.
The servant quivered before bowing and hurrying out of her room.
"Right away miss…"
She sighed and sat back down on her bed.
Was this guy really so terrifying?
The door burst open about half an hour later as the servant toppled back into the room alone.
"Where is he?" She demanded abruptly rising from her almost sleeping position.
"H…he refused to come Princess," the man stammered catching his breath. "H…he said that if you wanted to see him…then you should do it yourself!"
"How rude!" Nami stated picking up her long soft coat and stepping into her slippers. "If he thinks that he can order me around like he's the superior one then he's got another thing coming!"
The servant put on a worried look as she stormed from her room and out into the sub-quiet castle.
"Yes that's right! I'm looking for the samurai called Zoro that lives down here!"
"You're looking for…Zoro…" the prison guard gulped. "A…are you sure…you want him? I mean…I could get someone else to--"
"No! I want Zoro!" Nami said angrily as her temper flared.
"Uh…well…if you need help…then just call out or something," he muttered as he opened up a near by draw at the desk that he'd been sitting at.
Nami took the keys from the man and stared.
"Why are there two?"
"Because the other one is for the chain around his neck," the guard answered opening the gate, which was the entrance to the long hallway beyond that was lined with many doors on both sides. "He's number 364! Trust me you wont miss it!"
She gazed at the long hall that was old and musty with the keys grasped tightly within her hands. The even numbers were on the left hand side, so his cell must not have a window in it. By the time Nami passed the hundreds she began to worry. Everyone seemed to be terrified of this guy. Even the guard had quivered at the sound of his name.
Was he really like a demonic beast?
Finally coming to the door, Nami could see now why she could never have missed it! It stood out from the rest with three huge slash marks carved into it and the word Demon had been burned into a bronze nameplate.
There was only enough room for her to step once into the cell before she was confronted by a huge bed that filled every square inch of the floor, except for the place where she stood that looked like it had been chipped out of a perfect square. It stood at her kneecaps with only a small gap between itself and the floor that reached about half way up her shin. Looking to the low ceiling she could see that it was mainly flat apart from a small section on the left hand side, which seemed to go vertically upwards.
"Go away," came his gruff voice from the shadows.
"You're Zoro right?' Nami asked nervously.
"You've got some nerve waking me in the middle of the night!"
"I've got nerve!" she said in an offended tone. "You're the one with nerve! Refusing to answer you Princess's call!"
"So you're the idiot who tried to summon me!"
"You really are rude," Nami shouted at the man she still couldn't see. "Don't you have any respect for the Royal family?"
"Not really," he mumbled. "Now go away!"
"I'm not leaving!" she stubbornly stated.
"Then shut the door," he growled. "You're letting all the light in."
Looking around Nami found a small lamp on a shelf near the door and turned on the gas that lit a flame from a tiny spark before she reached behind herself and shut the door.
"That's worse," he groaned. "Turn it off!"
"No!" Nami snapped. "Because then I wont be able to see anything."
He groaned again and rolled over, half burying his face into one of his many pillows. Now that the lamp had lit up most of the room she could finally see the infamous Zoro that lay in an ocean of very thick blankets with his bare back facing her. Nami could see one of his coarse black eyes glaring back at her through the shadows as she slowly took a seat on the edge of his bed.
The bed was very long, and even if she lay down where she was at the moment her head would only just reach his ankles that she could just see the outline of under the covers.
There was a glint of metal among the mess from the fire light as she saw a long chain running from the corner of the wall to a loose steal dog collar around his neck. Three sparkles of gold flickered off his ear as she noticed that the bed sloped up slightly at the end, where the top half of him seemed to be resting.
"Do you want something, or are you just going to sit there all night with that annoying light on?" he snapped making her jump slightly.
"Um…would you like to go for a walk with me?" she asked shyly.
"No!" came his instant response.
She sighed and let her eyes wander.
This hadn't quite been the way that she'd planned things to go.
Noticing for the first time, she found his swords resting on a small long shelf just above the bed. They too seemed to come alive in the low light.
"Why?"
Her eyes fell back onto Zoro.
"…'Why' what?"
"Why do you want me to walk with you?"
"Well…I wasn't really sure how often you got out of here," she muttered looking at the chain around his neck, "and it would be quiet in the garden at this hour."
"I would have been in total silence if you hadn't come along!"
"It was just a suggestion," Nami shrugged.
He sighed and rolled onto his back.
"Alright, I'll go for a walk with you," he mumbled as he sat up, "but I'll have to get some clothes on first!"
"You sleep naked!" she said in alarm instantly turning away from him.
"Yeah! Wait, but not entirely," he reassured her, as he noticed her discouragement. "I usually sleep with pants on, but on hot nights--"
"I don't need to know this," Nami shuddered as he stood up and pulled his clothes down from that vertical hole in the ceiling that she'd noticed before on entrance.
Why and how would you keep clothes up there?
"So you're the Princess of this castle are you?" Zoro asked as he gazed up at the diamond-scattered sky.
"You didn't know!"
"Well considering that I spend 22 hours a day locked up, it's kind of hard to find these things out!"
"22 hours! What exactly do you do to keep yourself occupied for all that time?"
"Sleep," he muttered.
"That's it!?"
"Pretty much," he shrugged. "I mean it is a little difficult to train in that room."
"Well what do you do in the two hours that you aren't in there?" she asked curiously.
"Sleep and train!"
There was silence, except for the lonesome cricket.
"Do you ever do anything else with yourself?"
"Eat?" he shrugged again. "Drink?"
"And people find you terrifying because…???"
"How should I know?" he asked in annoyance.
The cool wind brought silence once again as they stood slightly next to one another, avoiding the others gaze.
"So how long do you want to stay out here for?" he asked as she pulled her coat tighter around herself.
"As long as you want!" she smiled.
Zoro turned his head away from her then his whole body so that his back was facing her.
"Fine then! Let's go!"
Nami felt shocked as he began to walk off, leaving her standing there.
"Wait!" she called grabbing his wrist. "I want to show you something!"
His body seemed to become rigid as she desperately clung to his arm.
"You'll…catch a cold out here," he stammered not turning to face her.
She felt herself blush before a little giggle slipped out.
"Are you worried about me Zoro?"
"Wha…No!" he hurriedly replied spinning back around. "I was just…why…why would I worry about you?"
Tinges of red appeared on his cheeks that could only just be seen in the clear moonlight.
"Well if you aren't so worried, then why did you save me today?"
"I…I was just doing my duties," he stammered as he tried to free his writs.
"But you said you didn't like the Royal family!" Nami stated holding on with all her might.
"Like I said earlier. I didn't know that you were the Princess!"
"But you also said that--"
"Ah…lets just go and see this thing that you want to show me," he cut in.
Nami opened her mouth to finish what she had been saying but closed it again before her smile returned.
"It's this way!"
Nami could feel him dragging his feet as they passed through the shady trees walking in between the flashes of light cast by the moon. Her hand was holding his and she could feel the rough surface of blisters on his palms. She stopped just before a giant hedge and turned to face Zoro.
"Close your eyes!" she pointedly told him with a smile.
"Why?"
"Because it's a better effect!"
Zoro raised a wary eyebrow before he sighed and shut his eyes. Nami quickly pulled him into the tall hedge entrance and swung open a large old rusty gate that creaked on its hinges.
"No peeking," she giggled as she saw one of his eye lids flicker.
They finally reached a small little paved path that was over run with flowers and right in the middle of the whole garden, where all the paths met was a glistening fountain.
"Alright you can open them now," she said happily as their hands parted.
Zoro just stood in awe glancing around at the moonlit scene as Nami ran off in front of him dancing in and out of the shadows.
"Isn't it amazing?" she cried as the water sparkled through the dark. "I love this place!"
Zoro slowly made his way towards her as she turned on the spot, dancing with an invisible partner.
"It's beautiful," he muttered to himself as he gazed at his reflection in the rippling water.
"Hey Zoro," Nami gasped enthusiastically grabbing his arm once again. "Will you dance with me?'
"D…dance," he choked as she latched herself into his arms.
"Come one, I'll teach you," Nami smiled as she forced his hand on her hip, which made him jump a little. "It's fun anyway."
Zoro's face pinkened in the light as her hand slid onto his shoulder and she began to try and guide him around the fountain in a waltzing manner. It took a while, but eventually he seemed to be able to walk a bit more gracefully around the shimmering pool. She giggled at his uncomfortable face as his white shirt reflected the moons evening glow.
"Why…why do you call me Zoro?' he asked as she spun herself into his arms, so that her back rubbed against his chest.
"Well that's your name isn't it?" she questioned, tilting her head back to look upside down at him. "Why is that so strange?"
"Everyone else that has ever asked to see me has referred to my door number or the name plate 'demon' when we were in conversation," he muttered holding her in close as they stood together with the flowing fountain. "Yet as soon as you walked through that door you addressed me by me real name. That's never happened here before."
"I thought that it would be rude to do otherwise," she whispered feeling his strong arm around her body.
"Would…I be able…to ask you your name?"
Nami blinked up at him with her innocent eyes. A flash flickered though her mind suddenly causing her eyes to widen. There was a man dangling from an outstretched webbed hand, blood soaking his front.
"Sure…" she muttered glancing back at the fountain. "It's Nami!"
"Na-mi," he repeated with a sigh as she felt his head rest against the back of hers. "It's a nice name."
She blushed, as a wave of security seemed to wash over her while they stood there together.
"Your hair smells sweet," he muttered as a soft wind rippled the garden.
"My What?!" she asked pulling away from him.
"Er…"
He looked confused, like he'd just come out of a dream or something.
"Y…your hair…"
Zoro gulped and looked away from her.
"Sorry…I was thinking out loud," he muttered.
They both blushed and turned away from each other.
"It's from the Tangerine grove," Nami whispered tapping her fingers on the cool surface of the fountain. "I spend most of my spare time there either helping mum or gathering some tangerines for my room."
She saw Zoro turn back slightly out of the corner of her eye which made a knot appear in her stomach.
"I've been there before," he muttered. "It looks good at sunrise!"
Nami smiled as she turned back around to face him.
"Before we go, I want to show you something else," she said grasping his hand again. "It's so special that it can only happen at night time!"
Zoro stumbled along behind her as she hurriedly dragged him out of the garden and onwards through the forest. She could hear his swords clanging together and the quiet tinkle of his earrings. They passed through tall dense trees until she stopped abruptly at a large clearing nearly causing Zoro to slam into the back of her. It was filled with long green grass, which passed over the top of her knees.
"We're here," she said happily standing aside.
"Well this is very dull," he muttered folding his arms. "Compared to the first place we went to."
He glanced down at her out of the corner of his eye as she smiled back up at him.
"I haven't shown you the best part yet!" Nami stated as she ran playfully through the grass.
As soon as she passed into the long grass, lights began to awaken, soaring into the night air. Zoro's face of disappointment suddenly changed into amazement.
"What are they?' he asked stepping into the grassy clearing, while grasping a few of the lights before letting them go again as they tickled his hands.
"Fireflies!" she cried spinning around among them, as they seemed to dance with their awakening.
Zoro slowly made his way over to her, catching the little lights as he went. There were thousands of them now, all buffing through the air with their butts flashing wildly. Nami slowed down her spinning as Zoro reached her with his hands clasped together and little shimmers of light slipping through.
"Here," he said with a smile as he held out his hands a little.
Nami stopped spinning and realized that they were about a step away from each other. She reached forward and softly placed her hands over his, before he slowly opened them. They both gazed in awe at the beam of fluttering lights smiling at one another through its gaps. Zoro suddenly leaned forward, his strong arms grasping her tightly, and placed his lips gently onto hers. Nami felt her eyes widen with shock as she stared straight at the calm man that had closed his eyelids. He slowly drew away letting a firefly pass through the two of them. Zoro caught her shocked expression and looked away.
"Sorry…" he muttered turning away. "It wasn't my place to do so!"
Nami slowly raised her hand to her lips as Zoro began to walk off, the fireflies still dancing around them.
"Zoro wait!" Nami called after him, stopping his travelling.
She grasped his middle and buried her face into his back.
"Don't go," she whispered grabbing fistfuls of his shirt.
"I…I'm sorry," he mumbled. "I shouldn't have done that."
"There's nothing wrong with expressing your emotions!"
"But…I'm a dungeon boy and you're…"
"Who cares what our rank is?" Nami asked as she pushed away from him. "What kind of samurai are you? Listening to your mind instead of your heart."
He seemed hurt as his body turned back around while she gazed up at his depressed face.
"Before today, neither of us ever knew about each other," he muttered as he reached up slightly and brushed the side of her cheek. "Yet, spending tonight with you makes me feel like it's been a life time!"
She smiled as a few fireflies flew between them again.
"You're right y'know," he whispered leaning in so that their noses almost touched, "a samurai should always listen to his heart."
Nami ran her fingers though his short green hair as his lips pressed against her once again, while the fireflies danced around them.
That's it for chappie 2 guys!!! Please review, it takes you about 5 seconds but it makes our day ;) And I reply to each and every one of them. Personally.
L8er!!!
Rielle & The Friend