A Hero's Desires

Chapter 4: The Nightmare Begins

Reaver escorted Sparrow to her own private chambers. She was at least satisfied that she did not have to sleep in Reaver's room. As he opened the door, the room stunned Sparrow.

The room was fairly large and beautifully decorated. At the farthest wall was her double bed with 2 decorative nightstands on each side of the bed. In front of the bed was a small table. On the eastern wall was a large fireplace with a fancy chair in front of it. On the right side of the fireplace was a mirror and to the left was a bookshelf. On the western wall was a well-decorated wardrobe. To it's right was an open archway leading to an upper deck outside, viewing the ocean.

Sparrow stood there, amazed. Reaver gave a smug smile.

"Impressed?" he asked, placing his hands on her shoulders.

Sparrow was speechless. The room smelt brand new and the furniture was colored in red and gold. The fire made the room light up, reflecting off the gold. Sparrow could not believe that this was her room. It looked too nice. She was so captivated by it that she did not know whether she should sleep in the bed and make it messy.

"Dinner is in one hour. Do try to make yourself look more…presentable." With that, Reaver shut the door.

Sparrow turned to the door then continued to look around the room. She then heard pawing at the door. When she opened it, Wolf ran in and began to jump around excitedly. She kneeled to the ground, hugging her dog.

Sparrow then walked to the wardrobe, dropping her enchanted satchel on the table and placing her weapons on her bed. She opened the wardrobe, astounded by the number of dresses and outfits Reaver had placed inside. Sparrow began to look at the dresses and pulled some out to see how they would look on her. One dress that caught her attention was a beautiful burgundy dress. The dress was made of velvet and had gold trimming. It was smooth and smelt vagly of roses. Along with the dress, was a pair of black flats. Sparrow removed her clothes and placed them on the table, next to her satchel. She then slipped into her outfit. She began to look at herself in the mirror. Sparrow thought that she actually looked pretty. She wasn't the person to really care about her appearance.

After dressing herself, she then fixed her hair and make-up. She did not do anything fancy with her hair. Instead she put her hair up in a messy bun, but it looked pretty. As for her make-up, she wore only black eyeliner. Once she was done, she quickly gussied herself up one last time. Sparrow then told her dog to stay, while she left the room.

Gracefully, Sparrow made her way down the stairs. She went down slowly, knowing each step brought her closer to Reaver. Sparrow began to think about the agreement she made with Reaver. Just thinking about it made her feel sick. As she was thinking about it, she stumbled down the stairs, nearly falling over. She regained her balance and continued to walk down the stairs.

Reaver was sitting in the dinning room, slouched in his chair, playing with is silverware. His stomach rumbled with hunger. As he sat in the chair, he began to lose what little patients he had.

"That girl better get her arse here her soon," he thought to himself. As he continued to play with his silverware, light footsteps approached the dinning hall. Standing in the doorway was Sparrow. Reaver was stunned by her beauty, his mouth open in amazement. She made her way to the other side of the table, taking her seat. Soon the maids came in, carrying food on silver platters. They came in with chicken, roosted pig, fish, and much more. Sparrow's eyes widened, she knew she could not eat all of this. Reaver began to stuff his face with food, while Sparrow ate her food daintily. As she watched Reaver eat, she could not help but giggle. Reaver was an elegant man, his clothes, his home, even his looks could justify that. However his table manners were atrocious. One would think even a pig would have better manners than Reaver.
He looked up at Sparrow, noticing her giggling. She immediately stopped and continued to eat calmly, putting a stern look on her face. Reaver stopped consuming food and just looked at Sparrow. A mystery surrounded her that he wanted to understand. Even though she resented him greatly, Reaver still desired her.
Time slowly passed as the candles continued to melt away. Sparrow then stood up from her chair and announced that she was leaving dinner. Sparrow made her way out of the dinning room, thinking of ways to pass the time. She then decided to explore the mansion. Walking slowly, observing the hallways, Sparrow made her way to the study. Upon entering the study, she was blown away by what Reaver had.
He had not only vast amounts of books that a bookshop could only dare to dream to have, but he also had musical instruments. He had a harp, a harpsichord, a lute and more instruments. He also had a chessboard, cards and other games. Sparrow always had a talent for music. She began to approach the Harp. It was a gold instrument with interesting designs along the instrument. Sparrow began to play some of the chords, beautiful sounds echoing from the instrument. She pulled up a stool and began to play a song she remembered from very long ago. It was a lullaby her mother played to her and Rose before they went to sleep.

"When winter comes,
I shall sing for you,
When spring comes,
I shall dance with you,
Till all the world dances too.
When summer comes,
I shall walk with you,
When autumn comes,
I shall kiss you.
Till the stars begin to sing to you."

It was all that Sparrow could remember. Her voice echoed throughout the mansion. Even Reaver heard her bewitching voice. He began to follow the lovely melody to the study and continued to listen to Sparrow sing and play the Harp. He silently entered the study and watched Sparrow perform.
Sparrow continued to play, memories slowly entering her mind, just as the sun slowly rises over the eastern sky. She remembered her mother, her father and Rose. She remembered how happy they all were. Then how they were separated by death. Death took her parents first, then Rose. She was the only one in her family who still drew breath. Sparrow then ended the song, her voice tired. She loved to sing, but the memories began to put a lump in her throat, bringing pain.
"Oh such lovely music." Reaver praised, even applauding her. Sparrow whipped around, unaware that he was in the room the entire time. She began to blush, embarrassed that Reaver was interested in her music. He traveled towards Sparrow, intrigued even more by her.
"What else can you play?" He asked.
"Oh…um-well I can play-I can play…just about most instruments." Sparrow stuttered.
"I wonder, do you think you can help me learn this instrument? I never really understood it myself but it seems you do." Reaver asked, looking deep into her eyes.
Sparrow was a bit suspicious but agreed. Reaver then sat on the stool and began to play the harp poorly. It wasn't music to her ears.
"No, no, no, like this." Sparrow said, taking Reaver's hands. She began to guide his hands in playing the song she played. Reaver savored the chance to have Sparrow hold his hands. Her hands were smooth and soft but cold. She then let go of his hands and he began to play the most beautiful tune she had ever heard.
"You were tricking me!" she exclaimed, surprised. She was not angry at him but felt rather stupid that she fell for Reaver's tricks again. Sparrow looked at Reaver then left the room, he still playing the harp. She went to her room, trying to expunge Reaver from her thoughts, but she couldn't. Even once she entered the sanctity of her room, he was still on her mind. Sparrow quickly changed into her thin strapped nightdress, still fighting with herself. When she climbed into her warm bed, she could not rest her head without Reaver entering her dreams. She thrashed and turned in her sleep. She wanted him out of her head. But no matter how hard she tried, he still stayed.