In the middle of the night, Sparrow awoke to screaming. Registering her surroundings, she realized it was Reaver. Jumping out of bed and grabbing her gun, she ran to his room. Throwing open the door, she watched as he thrashed around.
He's having a nightmare.
Approaching the bed, she grabbed his shoulders and tried to wake up.
"Reaver, wake up. You're having a nightmare." She said, as she shook him.
"Reaver. REAVER!" She slammed him against his pillow, and his eyes snapped open. He looked around frantically before realizing it was Sparrow that woke up him.
"Oakvale...The shadow court..." Reaver's sentences were incoherent as he caught his breath. He placed his head in his hands.
"Reaver, that was a long time ago. You're safe, in Bowerstone." Sparrow sat on the edge of the bed and placed her hand on his shoulder, trying to calm him, "Do you want to talk about it?"
"It was just a nightmare," He spat, jerking from her hand, "Besides, shouldn't you mind your business?"
Sparrow's expression told him that was the wrong response.
"Well I'm sorry my first reaction to hearing screaming in the middle of the night was to check on you." She muttered back, standing up to leave.
Reaver caught her wrist, "Sparrow wait-I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped, I'm just not comfortable talking about what happened. Thank you, for checking on me."
Sparrow smirked, "Well look at you, taking accountability for your actions."
"Well, you said I had to prove myself to you, so...I guess this is a start." He replied.
"I guess its a good place for one. I do think I'm going to go back to bed, though." Sparrow gently pulled her wrist out of his grip, walking towards the door. Before exiting the room, she stopped and looked at him, "I'm glad you're okay, Reaver."
Walking back to her room, Sparrow sat on the edge of her bed. Sighing, she laid back down. Reaver's nightmare was the only thing that had brought her out of her own. While she was grateful that he let her stay here, being back in Old Town awoke the nightmare of her childhood, in which she watched Rose die again. Only now, they had evolved. After Rose's death, she would see her family. And then the three of them would remind her that it's her fault.
Sparrow tried to go back to sleep, but found herself becoming restless. Finally giving up, she decided to wander the house. Getting out of bed, she walked downstairs, admiring the simple home. As she walked to the window, she thought about Rosary.
She would have loved it here...Oh my precious girl, I'm so sorry I failed you.
Sparrow closed her eyes, and found herself in a flashback.
She was back in her home in the marketplace. She was heavily pregnant, and the baby would arrive any day.
"Bryn, I really think we should move. I would love for our child to grow up here, but its just not safe. Lucien might find out." Sparrow was pleading with her husband, "We could find a small cottage hidden away from everyone and raise him or her there. Once the threat of Lucien is gone, we could move back to the city."
"Sparrow, We'll be fine. No one has seen Lucien outside of the Spire in nearly two decades. I highly doubt he'll even look here, we'll be hidden in plain sight. If it will make you feel better, we can change the post outside to say I'm the homeowner, not you." Bryn replied, set on not moving, "Darling, you've got to stop worrying. Its not good for the baby." He held her hands.
"I just don't think they will be safe. If Lucien finds out, he won't just take the baby away from us, he won't hesitate to kill our child. The lunatic didn't bat an eye when he shot Rose and I. We need to leave Bowerstone." Sparrow looked into his eyes, trying to convince him.
"Moving won't solve the problem. When you return to your hero work, we will be alone. How hard would that be on the child?" Bryn said, "I have an idea. What if we make an emergency plan."
"What?"
"Think about it, that door right there has a direct path into the Bowerstone sewers. Should any danger come to us, and you aren't here, I will take our child and run."
Sparrow watched as the idea form in his head. While he was always patient, Bryn was also a stubborn man. The hero knew she would have to compromise with him.
"That's not a terrible plan, but what happens when Lucien sees that door, and knows exactly where you've gone?" Sparrow considered the plan, "We need to take out the door, and have a...a secret tunnel, or escape hatch. Something that blends in."
"Yes! Like a bookshelf?" Her husband suggested.
"No, that's what everyone does. He'll see right through it. We need something more casual." Sparrow walked closer to the door, examining it.
"What if the trigger was under the sink?"
"That...might work."
As the flashback ended, Sparrow realized she had been crying.
"Can't sleep?" She jumped at his voice. Quickly wiping the tears away, she turned to see Reaver standing on the stairs.
"I guess you could say that." She replied, trying to steady her voice.
"Are you okay?" He asked as he descended the rest of the stairs.
Sparrow took a deep breathe in and looked back towards the window, "I don't know."
"What's on your mind?" Reaver asked, standing next to her.
"I'm just...I don't know how I'm ever going to get control of my emotions ever again. It would be one thing if the only thing I felt was grief, but I'm angry, too. Not just at Lucien, or myself. I shouldn't be, but I am so, so angry at Bryn." She admitted.
"Why?"
"I begged him to move away from the city, to hide our child. He refused, and was determined to stay. He was so...attached to the city, that he convinced me a flawed escape plan would work. I'm angry that he refused to accept how dangerous I was, or that he never tested that damn sink every month like I asked him to. He could still be here, they both could! Why didn't he listen to me?" Sparrow was crying again.
"Why did he leave me?" She whispered, closing her eyes. "Now, I'm alone, again."
"No, you're not." Reaver said, hesitantly placing a hand on her shoulder.
"But I am. Every family I've ever tried to have has been taken away from me. I'm...I'm starting to think the universe is trying to tell me I'm not meant to have a family."
"Surely that isn't true." Reaver tried to reassure Sparrow.
"Oh but it is. Every chance I've had at family...they died. My parents got sick, and my sister was killed. I failed to protect my husband, and daughter." She placed her head in her hands. "I think the reason why I'm so angry at Bryn is because I don't want to accept the fact that I...that I failed as a mother." Her body shook as she sobbed.
"No, you didn't. You keep blaming yourself for something that you didn't know would happen." Reaver said, staring at her.
"You know, Sparrow, we might understand each other better than we realize."
"What do you mean?"
"Well...in a way we're very similar. We've both done things without knowing the consequences it would have on others."
"I know you're trying here, Reaver, but theres a big difference between sacrificing a town for youth, and killing a tyrant who was going to end the world." Sparrow said, insulted he would dare compare them.
"You're right, the difference is the way we handled it. When Oakvale was sacrificed, I ran. I ran away from it all, and began turning myself into horrible person. For centuries, while you didn't do that. You became motivated to help others. Your priority was the greater good, regardless of what it did to you. Then, when you were granted the choice between bringing your family back, resurrecting those who died in the Spire, and wealth, you chose the option that was least self serving." Reaver continued, "It doesn't change the fact that we both did things without knowing the true costs. We blame ourselves for not knowing what would happen."
"I guess you're right. It's just hard to fully admit to myself that I probably couldn't have changed the outcome no matter what I did, and wishful thinking doesn't bring them back." She sighed.
They were quiet for awhile.
"You are not alone, Sparrow." Reaver said, quietly.
"What?"
"I know you don't exactly trust me, which is reasonable, but I'm still here, and I don't exactly plan on leaving any time soon." Reaver said, turning towards her.
"I appreciate that." Sparrow smiled, "Hey, I'm starting to get pretty tired. I think I'm going to head up to bed."
"Ah, I think I'll follow suit. If you get lonely, feel free to join me in my room." Reaver smirked.
"Kidding! Kidding." He hastily put his hands up when Sparrow shot a lightening bolt next to his head.
"Consider that a warning shot, Pirate." Sparrow said, walking back to the stairs, "Next time I'll get your hair."