Chapter 5
Nightmare
The tall, raven-haired woman looked up at the sudden sound her bar's door made when it collided with the wall and spared a quick glance at the two youngsters that were currently occupying the floor, their limbs all tangled up no matter how hard they tried to break free. Throughout the ordeal they never stopped blaming each other for the situation they were in and that caused her to take a moment to wonder how they could possibly end up in this mess before turning her attention to the bird that came to sit next to her on the counter.
"How come you're so early today?"
The raven used one wing to point at the still straggling duo before cawing once and dropping its head down, its beak still open as if it was sighing.
She smiled.
"Someone will get a treat tonight, it seems. As for you two, if you have no intention to kiss, just get up already. There's still work that needs to be done."
Hearing the serious tone in her voice, the two immediately stood up, both of their faces red from embarrassment because of her words, and sat at the bar, leaving a spare stool between them.
Shakky couldn't help but think how cute they were together and decided to make sure she would find ways to get them in more situations like this one so she could observe them and, thus, entertain herself. If, in the end, she managed to get them to confess to each other, she knew of a certain someone who would be happy enough to organize a party; a bunch of certain someones, actually. Sure, they all agreed to leave them alone to decide when and if they would get together, but they also agreed that a little push in that direction was necessary, considering their personalities. Watching them now sitting away from each other and looking at opposite walls, she was glad for that last decision their little 'council' made, since it was as plain as day that they were already developing feelings for each other. It would be a pity if they never acted on them because of their pride and stubbornness.
The last part was meant mainly for the girl. Everyone who managed to get close enough to her and got her to open up even a little bit could tell she had feelings for the boy since a long time ago. The problem was that she was just too stubborn to admit it. There were, of course, times when she would unconsciously allow herself to go with the flow and react to him according to her emotions, Shakky saw and was told that much, but afterward she was trying to pass those moments as if she were only caring for a friend. There were days when the ex-pirate could spend whole hours wondering how a person could be so adamant to believe in a self-made lie than their own heart.
Deciding to stop thinking about it for the time being, she lit a new cigarette and turned to the pink-haired girl.
"Calypso, what do you plan to do now? You did return early from your night stroll so, if you wish, you can have a few free hours before continuing with your day."
The girl furrowed her eyebrows as if considering her offer, just to shake her head a bit after.
"I prefer to move my schedule forward, but thanks for the offer."
Shakky smiled at the girl until she disappeared in the kitchen and then looked at the boy with a grin.
"So, Ace…"
He blinked at her awkwardly, not really knowing what to expect.
The woman then gave him a warm smile.
"Would you like to take a bath?"
Ace blinked again.
"Um...yeah, sure."
Still smiling, Shakky motioned for him to follow her before she started walking toward the stairs leading to the second floor of the building and onto a small hall which she proceeded to cross so she could reach the door at the very end. She stopped in front of it and turned to the pirate again.
"This is the bathroom. It's not big, but it's comfortable enough so I really hope you'll enjoy your time in there. I left some towels and clothes for you on the shelf so you'll see them upon entering and anything else you may need is in the cabinet next to the mirror. Once you're done, you can come down to the kitchen to eat something if you want; otherwise you can just do whatever you like, as long as it isn't reckless and ruins your cover."
Finishing what she had to say she started to leave, her smile growing a little bit more mischievous once she was standing in the hall alone.
"This will keep him occupied for a while."
She just hoped, however long he'd take, he would allow her enough time to have a private conversation with the girl currently occupying the kitchen.
Before going there, Shakky made a small detour to close and lock the doors and windows of the building so there wouldn't be any interruptions. Once she was sure that there was no way anyone could break in, she turned the lights of the bar off, leaving only a small one behind the counter, and hastened her steps slightly as if to make up for the lost time.
Upon entering the kitchen she saw Calypso sitting on a chair with a basket of potatoes balancing on her thighs. She looked very concentrated while she was peeling them neatly and swiftly, as if she had done it a lot of times in the past. It was true that she did, but that was only half the reason why her skills were so polished since the girl was, unknowingly to most, very skilled with knives.
Smiling at the, by now, common sight the older woman swiftly moved to sit opposite the fuming girl that was trying to drive a pink curl out of her eyesight without pausing at her work.
"I see that no matter what you do your curls still act on their own accord, hm?"
Calypso just gave a sigh of defeat, leaving the strand of hair to do as it pleased.
"No matter how many times I tie and untie my headband, there are always a few of them escaping and dancing around with every move. It's quite frustrating."
"Would you like me to help you?"
The girl paused for a moment to study the woman and then went back to the work at hand.
"Why don't you just say what you came here to say?"
Shakky smiled. She never believed she could sneak up on this girl. It was always as if Calypso knew the true intentions of everyone and everything around her. It was as if she could 'read' through everything, 'see' under every mask. Sometimes it was scary but, the truth was, it was just adding to the mystery she herself seemed to be.
Laughing a little, the barkeeper stood up and walked behind the girl, untying the thin black fabric that was holding the rest of the curls back and watching as they fell all over the girl's back and shoulders. Using her fingers she combed through the soft pink strands and, while holding as many of them as she could behind with one hand, used the second one to bring the dark cloth twice around her head, causing the two sides of it to meet at the bottom left side next to the girl's neck. With the help of both of her hands, she now tightly tied the headband in a little knot, allowing the rest of it to fall down and mix with the many curls before returning to her seat.
"So?"
Calypso didn't look at her when she asked her question.
"What happened tonight?"
The girl sighed.
"We just tripped and fell, Shakky. That's all."
"I meant before that. Something happened and you had to return early. And it had to do with him."
"What makes you think so?"
It was Shakky's time to sigh now.
"Calypso, you never return early when you're out working. No matter what, you always come back here about one hour before the sunrise so, please, tell me what happened."
The peeling stopped once again.
"He came to find me, Shakky. I was at a bar, not a good one, and he suddenly appeared in front of me as if knowing I was there. We...talked a little, but..."
The hand holding the knife tightened for a few seconds before relaxing again.
"There were bounty hunters in the bar. They were looking at him and I was afraid. I thought they recognized him and I lost it. I just dragged him away from that place and all the way here so quickly, I didn't even realize when we arrived. I don't even know why I acted like that, I just...did."
"I think you do know."
Calypso looked up with wide eyes, a storm of unmasked emotions trapped in them; desperation and fear being the most recognizable ones of them.
"Come on, you pretty much said it right now so, why don't you just admit it to yourself?"
"I have nothing to admit."
"Calypso, please."
She shook her head.
"I have nothing to admit."
Shakky lowered the tone of her voice a little.
"Why don't you just tell him?"
The stare that was sent her way now was cold but, right under that mask, you could see the pain. It was hidden in the slight tremble of her lower lip and in the tiny furrow of her brows. It was also hidden in the eyelashes on the corner of those cold eyes, where tiny teardrops were forming.
"You know very well why. You, of all the people I have ever known, are the only one who knows the reason why."
That was the last thing the girl said before placing the basket down on the table and walking to the sink.
Knowing better than to keep trying with this conversation, Shakky decided it was time for her to go to bed, so she walked to the door, only to stop before opening it.
"Try to get some sleep yourself soon. Goodnight."
She made her way out of the kitchen in a hurry, and only after closing the door did she notice Ace standing there, on the wall to her right, with a look of shock and confusion in his eyes and the questions he didn't need to ask written all over his face. Shakky just placed a firm hand on his shoulder and squeezed.
"I'm sorry..."
••••••
After, she disappeared in the darkness, the sound of her shoes on the wooden floor the only evidence as to where she was heading, leaving Ace alone and even more confused.
"What did she apologize for?"
Pushing the whole incident to the back of his head to think about later, he opened the door the other woman closed a few minutes ago and entered the kitchen. His eyes instantly fell to the fluffy sea of pink and he would have made a beeline there if he hadn't noticed the trembling on the shoulders of the owner of the hair. Involuntarily, the part of the conversation he heard came to his mind.
"Why don't you just tell him?"
Ace frowned at the many questions those words caused him. Tell who and what? Could Shakky mean him? Did Calypso know something he should know about?
"You know very well why. You, of all the people I have ever known, are the only one who knows the reason why."
The voices were kind of muffled since he was outside the room but he could recall how strange Calypso's one sounded. He could remember a similar tone in her voice when they first met.
"I was keeping you unconscious here in this room for a whole month after the end of the war."
On any other occasion he would have smiled at this little memory, but at the moment he felt at a loss. What should he do? Should he just leave and pretend this never happened or stay and try to...fix things any way he could?
"Do you need something?"
He had no idea if he was thankful she talked and stopped his overworking mind. He still knew, though, that she was acting as if nothing had happened. Even her voice was somewhat back to normal.
"Um...No, nothing."
His stomach, of course, found this moment to betray him as it growled quite loudly.
She looked at him with a smile that just looked so wrong to him. This is when Ace realized that she had no idea he was on the other side of the door when the two women ended their conversation and that he knew something was wrong.
"Just sit down. I've already prepared something for you."
He decided that for now he would just play his role and act as he normally would, and so he sat down on one of the wooden chairs. A plate that included plenty of meat with red sauce and a big bowl of rice were then placed in front of him and he started swallowing the food after a quick thanks.
"Watch out with the sauce. It's hot."
He grinned.
"I'm hotter."
She giggled and continued with her previous activities, which Ace concluded were preparing the food, while he was watching her every move with great interest. He was mesmerized by how quick she was while working with the various ingredients and how she could keep an eye on every single one of the many foods she was working on. Of course he himself was, since his food was already eaten and his plates were on the sink, helping here and there by warming stuff or checking the temperatures when she asked for him to do so.
With their combined efforts they soon had prepared everything, from the food for the next day to many snacks for Shakky's bar, and were now moving said snacks to the outside fridge.
While doing so, Ace studied the girl quickly, only to realize that any trace that something bad had happened was completely gone. She, as if sensing him staring, turned around and gave him a small smile.
"You look tired. Maybe you should go to sleep."
"But there are still things that need to be done."
She smiled a bit more.
"I will take care of them. Go to sleep. You can have my room if you want."
He shook his head.
"Thanks, but I will take the sofa. He and I have became quite friendly."
She giggled a little.
"As you wish."
Calypso took the plates from his hands and shooed him towards the sofa. He happily complied and soon he was lying there, covering himself with the blanket Shakky gave him some hours ago. It didn't take long for him to fall asleep as the sound of her soft steps on the floor worked as a lullaby.
••••••
Ace felt like he only slept for a few hours when a flapping sound was heard over his head, bringing him back from dreamland and into reality. Opening his eyes, he came face to face with a mass of black that could only be Ebony. Looking a little better, as best as he could with the limited light that was in the room, he noticed that the bird seemed a little worried.
"What is it, bird? Is something wrong?"
The bird gave a soft caw and flied towards Calypso's room. Ace took it as a notion to follow and so he did, feeling a little worried himself over what could have caused the raven to act in such a way. Could something have happened to Calypso? Upon entering the strange room he saw her curled in her bed, shaking. Ebony was instantly at her side, pacing around and flapping his wings. Soon he followed too and knelt on the side of the bed, his eyes studying the lying form.
It was obvious from all the shaking and the tears that Calypso was having a nightmare; a horrible one. Her face was a mask of pure horror, and it took Ace some time to realize that the moving of her lips was not because of the trembling but because of her murmuring something. Curious, he lowered his head slightly so he could try and figure out what the murmur was about and he was, understandably, surprised when he did. The girl was repeating his name like a mantra in a soft whisper, as if it would help sent the nightmares away. Confused once more, the pirate looked down at the raven who was giving him a strange look as if it was expecting him to act accordingly.
Taking some time to himself to think about the best course of action in this kind of situation, he finally smirked. Carefully removing his shoes, he raised the blankets and slowly slipped under them, next to the trembling form. Even more slowly and carefully, he snaked his arms around the girl's smaller body and pulled her to him so her head could now rest on his chest. The change was almost immediate. The trembling was gone and calmness returned to her facial futures, causing the dark-haired boy to smile and lower his head a little to place a soft kiss on her forehead before allowing himself to fall asleep once more, leaving Ebony to watch over them both.
This was the first time the two of them had ever shared a bed.