Paulie stood next to her at her sink as they took care of the dishes from breakfast. Kokoro washed them then passed them his way. He took a plate and busied himself drying it with a fresh cloth and with some prompting from her as to where, he placed it neatly away for her where it belonged. He made a note that if he was going to spend the night drinking with her again, he'd have to stop letting her goad him on. Alcoholics made dangerous drinking partners.

"If you want to stick around, he'll be over later for lunch," she mentioned, passing a fist full of cutlery his way.

"Who?" he frowned.

"Who else?"

It took Paulie a moment.

"Little slow today," she chuckled.

"How would I even explain being here?" Paulie replied, taking a spoon from his pile of wet cutlery on the countertop. He gave it a once over and stowed it away in its drawer.

"I dunno, helping an old lady out with her Sunday chores?" she offered. "Think that'd impress Iceburg."

She reached and added a couple more knives to his pile.

"Thanks for the offer, but no. Couldn't stomach eating anyway to be honest."

"Don't fancy all sitting round the table playing a big happy family then?" she chuckled.

As he reached for another spoon, Paulie brushed a coffee mug off the slippery counter and it fell, smashing on her hard floor tiles. The sound cut into his headache. He got to his knees to pick up the pieces.

"Oops, not to worry," she assured him from above. "Just a mug."

"Sorry," he said.

She grabbed a brush and dustpan from under the sink and stooped to help him out.

"Listen," he began hesitantly, picking up a chip of ceramic and handing it her way. "I'm not really sure what I said last night, but I think you might have got the wrong idea. If I said anything about Iceburg… you know, just forget it, ok?"

"Not to worry," she said. "Not quite all here though this morning, are you?"

Kokoro rose to her feet and emptied out the pan into her bin.

"Not really," he mumbled, getting up.

It felt like she hadn't really got his point, but he didn't push further. He was struck with nausea and just about made it to vomit in her trash rather than all over the floor tiles.

"This hangover's a bitch," he said, voice groggy.

"Always is," she replied, and helped set him down with a glass of fresh water and a few tissues to mop himself up.

Her arms sunk back elbow deep in hot water and citrusy bubbles, and she worked on mostly in silence except for the slosh of the dishwater and the clinking of cutlery and crockery finding their places.

"Feeling any better now? Good spew helps sometimes."

She slapped a wet, soapy hand on his shoulder, the scales of her fingertips rough on his skin, and at the unexpected sensation he jumped a little.

"Didn't mean to scare you."

She placed her hand back unsteadily on his arm where it lingered a little long, as if she needed the extra moment of reassurance just for herself. She seemed a little lost in thought.

"Relax, I won't say anything about what you told me," she said quietly. "And sorry if I'm jumping the gun on you."

"I get it though," he mumbled. "You just want someone to take care of him."

She finally let him go, and he took a loose dishcloth to his shoulder and dabbed at the damp bubbles dripping down his arm.

She smiled weakly at him. "Well, he's still alive ain't he? So you've done pretty ok looking after him so far."

Kokoro set the last of the cutlery on the counter and pulled the plug, letting the sink drain. She stood for a while, watching the soapy water swirl down into the holes, then sighed.

"And he talks about you too, you know?"

He reddened and stared down at the table, not meeting her gaze. "You sound like you've already made up your mind about us."

The last of the dishwater disappeared down the drain with a gargle.

He took his glass and sipped from it self-consciously. "If it wasn't awkward enough, I mean, he's my boss."

"All I'm saying is don't write it off just on account of that."

"Yeah, and what if it didn't work out? I could lose my job. I could risk losing everything."

He was surprised to hear her snort a little back. "Ha, you talk like you're the only person who ever had anything to lose," she said. "Aren't you a gambler kid? Or is he something finally too precious to risk losing?"

She let it hang in the air, and it lingered for far longer than felt comfortable for him.

"Well that's that," she said, her mood lightening as she placed her hands on her hips. "Thanks for the help with the dishes."

She slung her wash cloth up on a rail to dry.

"It was the least I could do," Paulie replied. "Although remind me not to let you get me drunk again."

"Heh, no promises."

"I should probably head off soon," he added.

She glanced over at her clock hanging on the wall.

"Train should be arriving pretty soon, gets here on the hour on a Sunday. Gives you about twenty minutes now."

She sat back down beside him, her knees creaking at the bend. The chair legs strained just as much to hold her as hers did getting on to it.

"But now that you still got a few minutes to wait around, you going to tell me the rest of it? What was in that parcel anyway?"

"Ok," he sighed.

Explanations were starting to feel tiresome, and he really wasn't feeling in the mood for it in his hungover state, but he supposed he was in her debt for being a listening ear and he didn't have much else to offer.

He sat across his table from his land lady. Under the dull stream of light from the hanging lamp above his table, she eyed him nervously behind the steaming cup of tea clutched close to her. The parcel sat on the table in front of him, and Paulie stared down at it just as cautiously as she watched him.

"Just open it," she whispered. "Get it over with."

He opened the brown paper along the tear she'd made earlier, and pulled out a bulky stack of photographs. He stood to hold them closer to the light and leafed through. He moved quickly over some badly taken motion shots and pictures taken from a distance, unable to make much of them, but stopped at one in which he could just about make out Tilestone's unmistakable image of in the bottom corner. On the next, was a couple of the Franky Family's guys, he still didn't know their names, but Kiwi and Mozu were in there too and it was easy to make out the towers of Ennies Lobby in the background.

He swallowed. "These…"

"Looks like they caught you."

He barely heard her over the sound of his own heartbeat. He found himself in plenty of them as he continued to flip through the pile. Lulu too, and most of the Straw Hats alongside with them.

"It's not like everyone in the city doesn't know we helped those guys out, though," he reasoned. "And it was mutual too. If it wasn't for the Straw Hats, everyone knows Iceburg would be dead right now."

"Sure, it's not like it would cause a scandal in Water Seven if these came out. The city sees everything that happened as more like a local victory even," she answered, her voice still lowered. "But it was a major incident what happened with those pirates, you know Paulie?"

"Yeah… I guess so." He sat back down and pulled off his goggles, dropping them on the table top. He ran his hand back through his hair. "Ugh. In the wrong hands this would be all the evidence the Marines or the World Government would need to confirm we were with them. They'd have every right to book us for collusion with the Straw Hats. Or at least all of us in these photos."

He spread the photos out in front of him.

"Here I was thinking this whole business with Deano was just some small matter of personal debt. But now what? Is he's blackmailing me?"

She took a timid sip of her tea. "So you owe the man that sent those two money?"

"Yeah. I don't understand though. I did what he asked for, and I'm going to get the money back to him too, so why pull this all of a sudden?"

His voice raised and she placed a finger cautiously over her lips.

"Paulie, I honestly can't answer that," she whispered.

Paulie got to his feet and made his way to his countertop, bracing tensely against it. He stood for a minute to gather himself, trying his best to calm down. Ms Lia took a photograph sat in front of her and studied it closely, saying nothing.

"He mentioned my dad," Paulie frowned. "So maybe this is something to do with him somehow. I wonder if he could've done anything to piss the guy off lately?"

"Who knows?" she replied. "Could you ask him, your father?"

"I'll have to try. Getting a straight answer from him's not exactly easy, but I'll try to call him about it." He sighed deeply. "And I'll have to go talk to him too…"

"If it's any good, I'm willing to help you out any way I can," she answered. "An old woman like myself's probably not good for much, but if you need any money, I have a little you can borrow."

"Honestly, I don't want anyone else involved with this, if possible. Thanks though, I appreciate it."

He looked at her, and in the dim of the dusty light that seemed to pick out and exaggerate every line and crack in her features, she looked so small and aged that her offer was almost heart breaking.

"Just don't tell anyone about these photos," he insisted.

"I'm not stupid you know?" She smirked and it cut through the tension. It was a simple gesture, but it felt like a massive weight was lifted off his chest.

"Of course," he smiled. "If anyone comes round again, keep playing the innocent old lady act alright? Don't let them know you know anything."

"I can do that," she said.

"Most importantly though, keep safe alright? Just stay in and lie low. That's the best thing you can do. He doesn't really seem above anything right now so I don't exactly know what else he could pull. If you see any more of his hired suits, head inside and don't answer the door. And if there's any way to let the other residents around here know that without causing any sort of alarm."

"Are you going to talk to Mayor Iceburg about this?" she cut in. "I mean, if it's Galley La business-"

"It's not," Paulie insisted. "And he won't hear about it. We acted on our own helping out the Straw Hats, and if worst comes to worst," He hesitated. "We'll resign from the company. Say it's nothing to do with GLC."

"That's very noble," she said, though it was hard to ignore the shock in her tone.

"It's not," he asserted. "If Galley La goes down, Water Seven goes with it, and I can't let that happen. Not after everything this city's been through lately."

"And everything Mayor Iceburg has been going through to look after it," she added softly.

Paulie nodded. "Yeah…"

She got to her feet. "If you need anything Paulie, don't hesitate to come and ask."

"I hope I won't, but thank you."

"Try not to worry about it too much, though that's easier said than done of course. But take care, Paulie."

"You too."

When she left, it was hard for him to calm. His pulse and mind both raced. He lay in his bed for hours staring at the crack in his ceiling hoping for some fail safe plan to form itself in his mind or for sleep to take him out of his cycle of thought. Eventually he dozed, but even in sleep, worry didn't give him a moment of peace. He didn't seem to get decent night of sleep at all lately.

When he woke, it was with a start. And much later than he should have been at work.

Distracted as he was with ruminating on his rush to work, he pushed passed any approaches on his way without regard for manners.

Thankfully, the majority of Water Seven citizens had taken advantage of the Saturday morning to sleep in later than usual too, so only a couple were about to draw offense at being rudely shrugged off.

Paulie rapped at Iceburg's door to no response. He went to his own office and turned the handle.

"Paulie, good morning," Iceburg greeted brightly. "A little late, but that's fine."

He was busying himself again moving things around Paulie's new office. It looked in significantly better shape than it had the day before, feeling now like a work space rather than just a cluttered pile of storage. The window was letting in a summery breeze.

"You've been working hard," Paulie said.

Iceburg hummed to himself as he moved the last couple of leather books on to a now well filled bookcase. "I have, haven't I?" He smiled. "Oh, what do you think of this painting?"

He brought Paulie to a large canvas at the far side of the office. It was a large, modern looking piece, mostly a stark white with bold coloured abstract marks that Paulie couldn't be sure whether they were supposed to look like something specific or not. At a guess, it resembled a ship but looked almost as likely to be a dog taking a shit so he was none the wiser what the artist had been aiming for.

"It was just delivered this morning. I bought it for the room, but I'm not sure that it works with it."

Paulie positioned himself in front of it and stood a while studying and making no more of it. "Um, it's fine."

"Well, that's not exactly a raving review," Iceburg replied, with a short laugh. "Anyway, if you want to take it down we can find somewhere else to hang it. And oh, of course, if you have anything you want to put on the walls, feel free to make this office your own."

"Thanks. I think I'll just keep it here though," Paulie said, with a scratch of his head. "I mean I don't really know a lot about art exactly, I'm sure it's a good piece."

"The only thing that really matters is if you like it or not," Iceburg added.

"I don't know really, to be honest. I don't really have any strong feelings about it one way or the other."

They stood for a minute and looked at it until Paulie felt his own lack of response begin to grow a little awkward to him. "Do you like it?" Paulie asked.

"Hm, I'm not entirely sure whether I do or not either," Iceburg replied cupping his chin a little. He furrowed his brow with a tilt of his head as if a slightly different angle might make a difference.

"Why did you buy it then?"

"It looked different in the gallery. I suppose things can look really quite different in another light," Iceburg mused.

"Guess so."

Paulie watched him reach and turn the painting to hang the other way round.

"A little better, I think," he said, though he still sounded unsure.

"Hm, you should leave this room to me now," Paulie moved on. "It looks like you've probably spent all night as well this morning in here when you could have been getting some proper rest or working on something a bit more important."

"Well, this was important too you know," Iceburg insisted. "My Vice needs a suitable work environment. I want to get you started on some design projects as soon as possible." Iceburg moved to an oak desk by the window, patting it proudly. "A new drafting table too, did you notice?"

"Start designing already?" Paulie worried. "Jesus, I feel like my drafting work's still too scrappy for that."

"Don't worry, I'll be going over all your work while you're still training," he replied, and started to busy himself again with more arranging, placing some papers away in a drawer. "If there's any problems with your blueprints, I'll show you how to fix them. The only way to learn is through doing. And well, of course, you're not going to get everything right first time. I wouldn't expect you to."

Iceburg glanced up to smile at him, but Paulie frowned back.

"Don't get your hopes up too high alright?"

"Paulie," Iceburg began.

Paulie looked his way but Iceburg faced the shelves and didn't look back this time.

"I'm sure all this isn't exactly easy on you," he said carefully. "I'm pretty sure you never really wanted this at all, did you?"

Paulie took a moment to think and another to respond. "I'd be lying if I said I did. It wasn't really ever a dream of mine to become a designer. I mean, that you think I'm actually capable enough, of course, it's an honour. It's just that…"

"Well, I understand," Iceburg said, placing a few ornaments on a shelf. "You want to be back out there in the shipyard."

"Of course," he answered, with a little more enthusiasm than he managed to hold back. "I mean, I love it, being a shipwright. Maybe in time I'll feel different about drafting, but right now I miss the grafting out there."

He stared at the pattern in the teak floor boards, not wanting to keep following Iceburg about the room with his eyes. It felt somehow invasive.

"And honestly," he added hesitantly. "I don't know that I'm ready to step up to the challenge either."

"It's ok to be anxious, it's a big change for you," Iceburg responded. "Change isn't exactly easy. I guess that's why all of us tend to want to resist or avoid it sometimes."

Paulie wondered whether he busied himself to make the conversation feel less intimate and if Iceburg had always taken this approach to avoid awkwardness, though he couldn't really recall specific moments. Right now though he felt like Iceburg staring him straight in the face would only have made it harder to speak his mind on the matter and it was relieving that they finally had the chance to have a proper honest talk about it.

"It's ok to grieve a little too. But of course, this doesn't mean you'll never build again as well, of course, so keep that in mind," Iceburg called from the shelves. "The role of the designer is less hands on, of course. But there's still times where you'll get to build. And of course, there's few things that are more satisfying than building a ship you've modelled yourself."

"Yeah, I can imagine, I guess," he answered with a short shrug.

"Trust me," Iceburg added, and for the first time in a few minutes, he turned to fix Paulie with a gaze and a brief smile.

Paulie would, of course, trust him with anything. Almost.

"I've started shortlisting candidates for my new secretary, by the way," Iceburg added quickly, diffusing the moment. "The sooner we can hire someone, the sooner you can start your training."

"So you actually have been doing something useful," Paulie joked, and Iceburg went back to another piece of filing.

"I don't know whether to be offended by that or not," he scoffed. "Oh. And, yes. By the way, there's an event coming up next week. I know these things don't particularly interest you, but you'll be expected to attend now your position's been made official."

"Ugh, well I suppose there's no getting out of it," Paulie complained.

"That's the spirit," Iceburg chuckled. "It's a formal occasion, so you'll need a suit for these things. I can take you tomorrow to get fitted for one if you like?"

He looked round and Paulie met his eyes with a blank expression. "Um, sure." He shifted awkwardly.

"Really? I think I expected a bit more protest," Iceburg replied. "I'll take you to my tailor in the afternoon. It'll be a Sunday, but I'm sure if I contact him he could arrange to see us privately. I have another errand to get done as well afterwards. That would suit you alright, yes?"

Paulie nodded. He didn't really know how else to respond.

"Anyway, there isn't much I can give you to do at headquarters today," Iceburg said, leaving his pottering and returning to Paulie's side. "But do you want to go and check up on how things are progressing at the shipyard? Lulu gave me a midweek report on how the projects are coming along, but he's on a day off today so if you'd like…"

"Yes," Paulie replied abruptly, and Iceburg didn't need to say more.

Without much talk, Paulie scrambled to ready himself.

"Thanks," he shouted back.

He left the headquarters at a sprint, not able to head to the docks quickly enough.

While he'd expected it, it still struck him at the yard just how invigorated he felt to be back in the bustle of work. It was another day of calm after the recent storm, bright and slightly breezy weather, a day when the workers were in high spirits, and the chatter of voices and easy laughter mixed with the sounds of industry. And, to his relief, they all greeted him just as usual, no fussing or crowding him as he might have been surrounded by in the city.

He toured the docks, checking up on each and their progress and, where prompted, helped here and there to instruct or demonstrate as needed, losing himself in his work. He took a moment to look over the repaired Dock One, watching the high cranes and feeling the sun beam down on him.

"Paulie!"

It was Tilestone's booming voice that cut through his moment, but in such high spirits, he welcomed his friend's noisy interruption.

"Tilestone! You wouldn't believe how great it feels to be back at the shipyard," he beamed, and slung an arm around Tilestone's massive shoulder.

"You're in a good mood!" he laughed.

"I am, yeah," Paulie said, letting Tilestone go.

"Here to work today?"

"Bits and pieces. Mainly checking up on things," Paulie answered. "Anything to report back to Iceburg?"

"As far as I know things are going pretty well," Tilestone boomed. "Everything's either on or ahead of schedule."

"Good news. Anything I can help out with?" he asked eagerly.

"We could use your rigging over here," Tilestone replied, gesturing over his shoulder at a large brigantine with bare masts just seemed to beg Paulie to be strung.

Paulie ran to the store room to fetch his tools from his locker.

Late afternoon, and at a quieter moment, Tilestone took a chance to breech the subject. He was trying his utmost to be as silent as possible, Paulie could tell. It just wasn't overly effective.

"That trouble you were in?" Tilestone began. "Manage to get everything sorted out?"

"Trouble?" Paulie asked.

It took him a moment. In the buzz of spending the day at the yard, he'd completely pushed all else from his mind.

"Oh," he said quietly remembering. "That." He grimaced. "Shit."

"I'll take it that's a no then?"

It hadn't bothered him in his good mood, but now Tilestone's voice was a droning fog horn drawing threat of attention to him he didn't want.

"Keep it down would you, God Tilestone."

"Sorry. Pissed you off now haven't I?" he laughed.

"I shouldn't have snapped at you. Sorry Tilestone."

"Maybe I shouldn't have reminded you."

"No it's alright," Paulie began gravely. "I think you needed to."

He looked around for a moment to make sure no one was looking their way.

"Listen," he said in a hushed voice. "I need to leave a little early, alright? You couldn't report back to Iceburg for me could you? I think I've got notes on the progress of everything here."

Paulie pulled out a sheet of folded papers from his cargo pocket.

"Drop it by his office could you? And if you could apologise I couldn't do it myself I'd really appreciate it."

"I'd ask what's up, but I'm pretty sure by now you'd tell me if you wanted to," Tilestone replied.

"Pretty much," he patted Tilestone on the back. "Sorry, but I'll manage this myself."

"Don't go getting yourself hurt or something Paulie. If you do I'll be going after the guy that does it myself."

Tilestone grit his teeth and raised his fist in display. It was reassuring to Paulie to feel he had friends he could trust had his back now. There was definitely no way a loud mouth like Tilestone could ever be a secret government agent.

In a less panicked state of mind, he'd have taken maybe an hour or two to sit and prepare for their meeting. But steeled from a day of hard work and a burst of adrenalin had a way of impulsively rushing him into things.

Before he knew it, he was at front of Deano's headquarters. He pressed the buzzer at the security door, and there was barely a pause before it opened and pushed in for him and he stepped into the shade inside where a couple of Deano's large escorts met him at either side.

Paulie was ushered into his bright, clinical office room.

Deano sat at his desk with a shallow iced drink in one hand and a thin cigar butted between his stubby fingers in the other.

"You sent guys round to my place yesterday, right?" Paulie pressed, crossing the stark white room and approaching him with speed.

The guards moved swiftly behind him. An empty chair sat at the front of Deano's desk and Paulie stopped short of it.

"What was that envelope all about?" he added.

"Isn't it obvious?" Deano answered calmly.

"No. And I'm losing my patience."

"No need to get testy. I'm blackmailing you, there's really nothing more to it than that," Deano replied. He took a puff from his cigar and let out the exhale in a neat smoke ring.

"Honestly though, it's nothing personal. Cigar?" he offered, pushing a wooden box along the desk with a haired knuckle. "Torpedoes from the South Blue. They're expensive. Sit."

Paulie ignored the offer. "Nothing personal?"

"I need money right now kiddo, and lots of it," Deano replied, with a swill of his glass. He raised it and took a mouthful. "Private surgery doesn't come cheap, you know?"

"So you decided to take it up with someone you know won't be able to pay you?" Paulie snapped. "Not exactly your best bet at getting it."

"You just got a pay raise with that promotion I assume? I was hoping you might go running to daddy for help again."

"Stop insinuating shit would you?" He slammed a fist on Deano's table.

Deano coughed, a smoky, guttural cough and his guards swooped forward, one restraining Paulie and the other moved to offer Deano a refresh of his drink. The boulder of a man filled his glass and Deano took a long gulp, his cough eventually subsided.

"Easy there now boy," he said, wheezing a little. "Get so aggressive and you'd start to make a guy think that maybe you and Iceburg really did have something going on."

"Fuck you," Paulie spat, riling in the fierce hold of the other guard.

"Like a stray dog," the large man laughed. "Someone should get this boy a lead."

"Come on Guy, be civil," Deano said, and he ushered his guard to place Paulie in the chair in front of him. He dropped Paulie into it and made sure he stayed put.

"There you go. Now, have a seat Paulie and let's talk this over," he added.

"Take it back," Paulie growled. "Maybe then we can talk."

"Alright, I apologise, ok?" Deano said.

The guard strengthened his clutch on Paulie's shoulder and he had no option but to let it slide.

"I know you're broke," he said. He seemed to be doing his best to summon some degree of sympathy. "Always are, of course. Trust me Paulie. I wouldn't be doing this if I had any other options. But of course it is about your connections. If there's anyone that has money in this city it's your boss of course. "

"I already asked him to do that favour for you, and I'm not about to go draining company funds on some blackmailing crap," Paulie stated sharply. "It'd cause trouble. And not just for us. Our company's the only thing keeping this city together and you fucking know it, everyone does."

"Beg, borrow… steal. I don't care where it comes from," Deano said, and Paulie felt his tone grow desperate.

"Can't you go get a loan? Like a decent person?" Paulie asked.

"I have tried. Declined. They don't give loans to people in less favourable lines of work."

"Am I supposed to feel bad for you?"

"Unfortunately you're just the kind of guy lady luck shits on. As it happened, I came across those photographs and took what opportunity I had. Believe me, like I said, it's nothing personal. Just tough luck."

"Came across?"

"An associate of mine, a journalist, managed to get hold of them," Deano explained.

He reached into his desk drawers and fished for a moment until he found what he was looking for. He placed a photo between them taken from the Main Station, with Paulie and Nami caught together in the rising storm.

"He was working on blowing up some shitty little tabloid love story about you and that young lady. Thought it'd be a great scoop what with all the attention you've been getting lately in the press. But I took a look at all the shots he'd built up and realised they were much more valuable than that."

He blew another smoke ring and Paulie was reminded with some bitterness how the man had once sat with him and taught him to make them himself. They hadn't always been on bad terms, or so it had seemed back then.

"Really, it's like I did you a favour. They were about to run that article, you know? It would have had made your cooperation with those pirates all public overnight."

"No one believes a cheap tabloid story," Paulie replied. "And besides the city already gets the gist about that."

"Still, does the government?" Deano suggested. "Surely any whiff of your involvement with them and you'd have investigators on your tail within minutes."

"You don't really expect me to thank you?"

"In cash. That would be nice."

"And if I don't, you'll sell the photos?"

"Now you understand. I don't want to have to sell you out. In the end, like you said, it wouldn't exactly turn out well for me either if Galley-La's reputation gets tarnished." He stubbed his cigar into his pristine white desk and when he lifted the butt, his guard moved to wipe the stain. "But I don't need your cooperation if you'd rather refuse. Either way, I'll get the money I need. To me, that's all that matters right now. And If Water Seven sinks to the bottom of the ocean, so be it. I'm not about to sink with the ship. Let it. I'll find somewhere else to go."

It was calm and ruthless, and Paulie realised he no longer had any leverage over him.

He sighed in defeat. "How much exactly are you after then? And when by?"

"Good to hear you've come round," Deano answered. "You have until the bill's due in full, so that buys you some time. A few weeks probably. I won't ask for anything before that, but believe me when I say that if you can't get it for me by then I'll have found a buyer for those photos. Sorry Paulie."

Deano passed him a sheet of paper, and at the bottom was a figure with a stream of digits longer than he was sure he'd ever seen.

"That much huh?" At this point he had few options. "God, well, I'll try."

"Good to hear." Deano gestured to the door. "Let's keep on good terms alright?"

Paulie held his tongue as he got up to leave.

"I went to the bar to think," Paulie said. "See if I could come up with anything at all. Then I got talking to you."

"So what're you going to do?" Kokoro asked.

"God knows, but I'll have to work something out," he replied. "But don't tell Iceburg anything. He'd only give me the money and that isn't an option."

The light was sharp on her porch. It bounced harshly from the rippling surface of the waves and the intense glare off her whitewashed wooden beams made his eyes wince. They stood and waited, watching the little speck of the Puffing Tom as it drew closer. It drew a solitary streak across the solid block of blue sea, cutting the sky at the neatly ruled horizon.

"Any time things get difficult, I run away from them. Can't run from this though."

"Funny then that you didn't run away when he told you to."

She took him into her arms and he reluctantly let her squeeze the life from him.

"Sorry, I'll stop pushing it," she said.

"Listen, Ms Kokoro?" He stood for a moment, trying to find the right words. Thanks for, uh, letting me get some things off my chest. I feel like I haven't really had someone to talk with lately."

His thoughts turned to his old drinking mates, and he scowled.

She smiled. "It was my pleasure. And if you need me, well you know where to find me don't you?"

"Appreciate it," he mumbled awkwardly.

From inside the house, her transponder snail sounded.

"Hold on a sec," she said disappearing into the station house. It took her a few minutes and then she returned, bringing a glass of water with her.

"I said Iceburg was visiting this afternoon, but seems like you forgot," she announced.

"Huh?"

"Called me to let me know he wouldn't be here. Spending the day with you apparently."

She smirked as Paulie reeled.

"Crap, he said he'd take me to get a suit today for that function," he replied. "And I've got this hangover, shit."

"Take these," she said, handing him the glass and a couple of round white tablets. She fished a pair of oversized sunglasses from her back pocket as well. "Should help a little."

"God," Paulie groaned, and took the pills and threw them back with the glass of water.

She pressed the glasses into his hands and while he looked at them with distaste, he still took them and placed them in a pocket should his need for them be great enough.

"Have a nice date," Kokoro chuckled.

"Don't joke," he stated. "Not in the mood."

"One last thing though," she added. "Me and Chimney weren't in those photos were we?"

"Thankfully not. You're safe."

"Well, that's a relief!"

She sat laughing to herself as the train pulled in to the station.

Paulie got in and tried to find a quiet corner where he might get some shut eye and hopefully sleep a little of the worst of his headache off.

He watched Kokoro from his window, still giggling like an old loon as she waved him off.

He pulled his window curtain and shut his eyes, but Kokoro's grin loomed in his mind, and he couldn't shake the feeling that maybe he shouldn't have chosen to share all of his close kept secrets with such a loose cannon.