Delivery

Chapter 14

Silence had once been a precious commodity. It had been a precious time to think, to collect one's thoughts, and to look at the world through an unbiased lens. Silence was now an enemy. Oh, there was noise, from every direction. Router, who had been thawed only to find her wounds treated, and herself bound, was issuing threats of all kinds. Chyou was expressing her gratitude for not killing her sister, but explaining that by continuing on ahead they were setting themselves up for a worse fate.

Tsurara and Ageha were talking, their friendly rivalry was still there, but both seemed at ease around one another. The silence that bothered Rock was the silence from Revy. She had moments when she was bothered, when it was best to leave her alone, and he knew this was one of those times. She needed to process, and unintentionally he had stepped where he wasn't sure he belonged.

He considered walking away, leaving, and letting her process alone. He almost did when she turned toward him. They'd worked together for a long while, he'd gotten to know the signs and signals of her moods, and he'd walked across the minefield of her emotional trauma multiple times. He did so because she was worth it. He did so, because even then, when he refused to admit it to himself, he loved her. He'd seen practically every single emotion she had, all but the one that she was showing now.

She didn't turn toward him, but he could see the way her shoulders shook that something was wrong. It wasn't anger. The posture was wrong, her back wasn't stiff, she didn't tilt her head slightly toward the left, and he didn't hear her muttering in a mixture of English and Chinese about how fucking stupid every damn asshole was around her. He wasn't sure what this was, until he touched her shoulder.

If she pulled away he would leave, and deal with her possibly lashing out later. He could handle it, but instead she didn't pull away. She turned and hugged him. He saw a glimpse when she turned. Tears, honest tears, rolling down her cheeks, and now dripping onto his shirt. He held her, letting the sobs continue, hearing the silent cry as it happened, and he just held her. Finally she stopped shaking.

"You can't help it, can you?" she asked, her voice wavering, "You've got to try and save people."

He stroked her back, "Revy," he began and felt her tighten against him, "It seemed right to, and besides we could use the bargaining chips."

She shook her head, "It's not them I'm talking about," she said, her normally brash and confident voice sounding uncertain and small, "I'm talking about me. Rocky-Baby, I'm already lost. I have been for years, but you tried to save me up there. Dutch would have let me kill them because they fucked up by coming here, but you gave us a reason to spare them. You stepped in to save me."

She sniffed, "Where the fuck were you when I was fifteen?"

He held her, "I was being grilled about my placement exams, told that there would be a lash if I failed, explained to that I would dishonor our family, our ancestors, if I failed."

She looked up at him, a half smile on her face, "Sounds like your old man and my old man could have been drinking buddies."

He smiled at the response, "Possibly," he replied softly, "But in the end it doesn't matter. I am who I am, and who I am loves who you are."

He stood there, holding her, hoping that the decision was a good one. Not being in love with her. That was something he'd do a thousand times over, and never change a thing, but that sparing the two that currently were forced guests. He hoped that doing so wouldn't bite them too hard. Dutch was still taking the advice he had earlier, going toward the patrolled areas, seeing if the yacht could be held up by military presence, and if that was the case then they would have to evaluate what to do with the two aboard.

His salvation of Revy was as much intentional as it was unintentional. Yes, he didn't want her to have to pull the trigger. He knew that it wouldn't be the first time for her, and it wasn't like she hadn't killed multiple times before. He'd heard enough stories to know that not everyone that fell under her guns had been attacking. But when he heard the shouting, he had to come up. He didn't let them know that he had been carrying a grenade with him.

Of course there was no way of knowing if he'd done more than scare them. Unless he turned the handle, held it, and latched onto one of the intruders. In truth he wasn't sure that he was ready for a suicide move like that. After the death of Yukio Washimine he'd almost ended up in a place where he felt lost. It had taken the salvation of Garcia Lovelace, Roberta, and Fabiola Iglesias. Of course the rubber bullet she had shot him with hurt, but it had been worth it.

It was the win he needed, the chance to redeem himself for losing so many before. Holding Revy he realized that he was doing the same here, but it was a different reason. This wasn't a matter of pride, and it wasn't because he was trying to assure himself that he was a good person. It was because he loved her so honestly and completely, and he didn't want to watch her lose more of herself. He felt her hiccup slightly as he held her, letting her get the emotions out that she needed to.

She was a hardened killer, and he knew that, but she was also the woman he loved. Now, he saw a part of her that he was sure she never intended for anyone to ever see. There was no doubt in his mind that Revy was one of the strongest women he'd ever known. He also knew that a good deal of it had to do with the trauma that she'd been through. She had been inside of the meat grinder again, and again, and each time it had taken something else from her. He didn't want to see her willingly going into that grinder ever again. They wouldn't ever be a normal couple. In truth neither of them would really fit outside of Roanapur again. He thought of stories about the American Old West, stories he'd been fond of growing up. It was normal for most boys, and girls, in Japan to sit in rapture about the tales of lawlessness in the far off old west of the United States.

Roanapur was as close to what he assumed that had been. If there was anywhere else they might have been able to live it would have been in that time before law and order overtook it all. He waited, letting her get everything out, and then a few moments later the two of them found themselves in the one corner that didn't have either the clients, Dutch, the two guests or Benny. There wasn't any shedding of clothes, no sudden impaling of his rod into her, but instead it was a couple holding one another. She leaned her head against his shoulder, and he looked into those eyes of hers.

For a moment he saw more than normal, almost as if the girl she had been was there for a split second, and then his Revy came back with a vengeance as she punched his arm, "Don't go telling anyone about that."

He smiled at her, "Why would I tell them?" he asked, "For the first time, the first real time, I saw you completely bare."

She rolled her eyes, "You've seen my tits before," she muttered, "I mean, really."

He grinned at her, "Not your breasts, or those legs, or your ass, but you, Revy, I saw you bare. You showed me inside, you let me see you at your most vulnerable, and I'm thankful for it."

She grinned as she leaned against him, "You know, I want to say that if we met when I was a kid, that we'd still end up here, but I got a feeling that I'd most likely try to beat the snot out of you," she said with a laugh, "Never really been good at expressing things."

He let her sit on his lap, her head on his shoulder, and he took it all in, "I can see that, and I'm sure I'd try to figure out why this cute girl hit me," he said, "Likely, I'd try to talk to you, and I'm sure that would have made it worse."

She kissed him, and then broke it a moment later. She planted two smaller kisses on his jaw and studied him, "I wouldn't know how to deal with it then, but I'm trying now."

There it was. She was trying, she was attempting, and she was doing what she could. She was taking the steps, and he couldn't be prouder of her for it. It was an enemy that she couldn't fight with her cutlass. It was something that wouldn't back down because it was outgunned. The enemy was her years of trauma, and she was willing to face them in order to try and make it work.

"I know," he said with a small smile, "And I couldn't be prouder."

She grinned and rested against him. The world seemed right, for once, and he had to wonder if it was going to continue to be right. Despite the fact that they had two guests which were going to hopefully help them negotiate better terms with the Miao Family, the world seemed willing to let them have this moment. He planned on taking full advantage of it. Resting his head against the top of hers he listened to the sound of her breathing.

"You know," she said, "I could get used to this. Don't get me wrong, we're gonna bang, hard, but I could get used to this."

He smiled, "It's nice," he replied before the air became a little foul, "Did...did you, you didn't, right?"

She let a bark of laughter loose, "Didn't what?"

He rolled his eyes, "Did you fart?"

She made a mock gasp, "We've barely been dating a few hours, and you're accusing me of farting?"

He shook his head, "So, you didn't huh?"

She gave him a playful slap on the chest, "No, girlfriends don't fart, that's a rule, I think."

He grinned, "Fair enough."

She sat there a moment, "Wow, that is bad though," she said, "If I did, I'd have to take credit. That's practically a chemical weapon."

He shook his head, "So, no more burritos?"

She laughed like a mad woman, "Oh, you're so wrong there. I'm not giving up Tao's Spicy Beef," she said through her laughter, "but I'm willing to share."

They heard walking and Ageha neared them.

"Oh that is foul!"

Rock could practically feel Revy grinning like mad, "They say she who smelt it dealt it, so you putting out some chemical warfare there?"

He heard a growl, "Ladies don't… do that," she said in a huff, "And despite how I may be perceived I am very much a lady."

Revy groaned, "Really?" she asked, "because you act kind of like a prissy…"

She stopped when she heard something shift.

"We'll continue this later," she said getting up, "Rocky-Baby, check in with Dutch."

She grabbed her rifle, and moved toward where the two were currently bound. Making sure they were still there she moved toward the hatch. She opened it and looked to see the yacht closer. She wasn't liking this. She didn't know what else they had, and she wasn't wanting to test it, but right now having those two downstairs was the only bit of protection they had. Maybe it was just the way they were running, but something told her that there could be trouble.

Over time Revy had learned to trust her gut. If something gave her bad vibes that usually meant there was something dangerous. Of course over time those vibes almost became an introduction, or a dance of sorts. It still was, but she wasn't as certain of doing the dance as she had been. She would, and she'd do it in a second, but now the reasons for doing the dance were more than simply gaining some wealth.

Money was still important, and it always would be. No one would ever tell her that money and power weren't important. They were usually one and the same, and more often than not they ensured that those who had were protected while those who had not were left to twist in the wind. She started to lower the lid when she heard it. The faintest of footsteps. They were soft, almost unheard, and certainly something that would belong to a kid. She looked for them again, only to hear the faint laughter. Her looking down and going down one step was all that saved her from her bullet finding her.