Chapter 13

Καληνύχτα

Shakky softly knocked at the witch's door, not knowing if she and Ace were awake.

"Come in."

The girl's voice was clear but low, indicating that the pirate was probably asleep. Opening the door, the woman looked at the bed where she found the witch sitting, her legs crossed and used as a pillow by the freckled man who seemed too happy, either because of a dream or because Calypso's skilled fingers were moving in small circles on his scalp and to his bare back, as far down as she could reach and then up again. On one of her knees she was balancing the thick, old book she seemed to be studying lately, but when the door opened, she took her eyes off the yellow, torn pages and locked them with those of the woman who just entered her room.

"Yes, Shakky? Do you want something?"

"I would like you to go out and fetch a package for me, if you don't mind. I was supposed to go get it on my own yesterday, but after what we had to deal with here, it kind of slipped my mind and it's about time to open for business now. Would you be kind enough to do me this favor?"

The girl smiled warmly at the older woman.

"Of course. I owe you, at least, this much. I also think it's about time I go out again and breathe a little fresh air since I've been cooped up in here a bit longer than usual."

The woman smiled back in gratitude and left.

The moment they were alone again, the witch looked down at her pirate, her expression growing more relaxed and caring instantly, and her delicate fingers started moving black locks away from his peaceful face.

"So sleepyhead, what do you say we go for a little walk?"

He didn't open his eyes but started leaning into her touch, bringing his hand up to brush her knuckles before he settled for tangling their fingers together.

"Everything is good with me as long as it takes you away from this dreadful book."

Calypso seemed to be deeply offended by his words, and her hold tightened on the book as she looked away from him with a pout on her lips.

"I must inform you then that this book here is very old and priceless and contains important information that I need."

He chuckled and grabbed the huge tome, bringing it closer to his face while paying no mind to her protests.

"'Legends Lost in the Grand Line'...What can you possibly need from such a book?"

She pouted a little more and glared at him softly, her arms crossed in front of her chest.

"None of your business, Mister Portgas."

He laughed and carefully placed the book on the side, making sure to mark the page she was on so she could continue her reading when they're back.

"It's alright, Cal. I was just teasing you. I don't really mind if you're reading about weird stuff or if you've got other strange interests. As long as it makes you happy, I'm alright with it."

He grinned up at her and she answered with a little peck on the tip of his nose.

"Thank you. Now, up you go. We must get to the post office before it closes for the day, you know."

He gave her a wink and a grin and rushed to his feet, stealing a few moments to stretch himself before getting to the difficult part of finding the rest of his clothes and accessories which were, as always, scattered all over the place. He spotted his hat easily hanging from the chair, and he could see one of his many shirts a few feet away, but he couldn't find the white bandage he used to cover the tattoo on his arm anywhere.

Calypso walked up to him and brought her arms around his waist, her forehead nuzzling the spot between his shoulder blades.

"What's wrong?"

"I lost the stupid thing I used to cover my tattoo. I can't go out without it."

She placed a gentle kiss on the spot where she was previously nuzzling and moved away to kneel next to the bed, reaching under it. Soon, the sound of something heavy being dragged on the floor filled the room and, after a while, a big wooden box could be seen coming out of its hiding place.

"What's this?"

She didn't look back at him, and her voice sounded heavy with emotions when she answered.

"Relics of a life long gone."

Ace's brow furrowed in confusion, yet he said nothing. He just looked as the girl said something in a language he couldn't recognize. Ebony, who had flown to sit on top of the box the moment it was completely out, his little black eyes looking up at his owner with worry, took flight once more when he heard her words and got lost in between the fabrics on the ceiling. When he returned, he was clutching something shiny in his black beak that Ace recognized as a key. Calypso took it from him and, with slow and careful moves, put it into the keyhole and turned. She paused for a moment before opening the box, and although most of the content was not visible because of her body, Ace could see that the interior of it held a collection of different things. Ace glimpsed a book, a few letters, a piece of wood with weird carvings, and a dark green bag made of silk with golden vines decorating it, which seemed to be filled with something. All the things were dusty, indicating that they had some time to be touched, and the trembling in Calypso's fingers when she reached inside to search in between them betrayed how emotionally straining it was for her to look at them, even more to touch them. It seemed to Ace that she purposely hid them away to forget about their existence, their meaning, or both. If any of that was true, why was she now, on her own accord, bringing them back into her life?

He was given no more time to ponder the situation because Calypso swiftly closed the box with a loud banging noise, locked it, and shoved it back under the bed. Ebony took the key back to his nest without wasting a moment. Then she stood and walked to stand in front of him, her head hanging low and her eyes glued to the emerald piece of fabric in her right hand.

"Cal, are you alright? What's wrong?"

Her eyes remained on what was in her hand.

"This was my mother's."

Ace was shocked into silence. Calypso was not the person to willingly and openly talk about her past, and yet, here she was now, mentioning her mother. Not knowing exactly what to do, he slowly brought his arms around her shoulders and pulled her in for a hug. After a few seconds of hesitating, she hugged him back and pressed her face against his chest.

They stayed like this for a while, her crying silently and him comforting her, until she pushed herself away and brought the hand still holding the fabric in between them again and slightly towards him.

"I am going to give this to you."

He stayed silent, watching her expressions and trying to figure out why she was doing this out of the blue. Calypso stayed silent for a few moments and then looked up at him.

"It means a lot to me, being my mother's and all, and I know that it, like me, will be safe in your care."

Seeing her look up at him, unsure and shaken, with her fingers unconsciously digging in his arm while still trembling slightly, was enough to take his breath away and cause a sudden pain to take over his chest. Without him even realizing it, he found his arms around her lithe form, crushing her on his chest and hiding his face in her pink curls.

"I promise you, I will look after it."

••••••

The errant for Shakky took them more time than planned to finish since, with Marineford still under construction and people who used to live there residing in Sabaody for the time being, the post office was filled with people waiting for news from their loved ones or answering to them. Ace and Calypso had to spend a long time listening to various men and women complaining about the rising crime wave in the area and the unusually high number of pirates arriving at Sabaody after Whitebeard's public declaration that One Piece exists, which caused a half-smirk to appear in the former's lips, before finally reaching the front desk and, not so politely, demanding the precious package.

After the short trip back to the bar to complete the delivery, the pair decided that the day was too good to be wasted and that another, longer walk was in order. For a while, they roamed through the streets without any destination in mind, until Ace turned to his companion with a slight frown on his freckled face.

"Cal, do you think I can go to my brother's ship? I wish to see it, but I have no idea how or if I can."

Calypso's eyes met his, and she smiled reassuringly.

"I don't see why not, Ace. I can take you there if you wish."

Feeling a further need to comfort him, she squeezes his hand softly.

"You may not be able to see your brother, but you can always protect his ship in his stead."

He smiled, happy that she cared for him enough to fulfill such a selfish wish, but still there was sadness in his eyes.

"Why is it so important that I don't meet Luffy?"

The girl was slightly taken aback by the sudden question, and she bit her lip.

"I gave a promise to someone that, no matter how much you begged or what you said, I wouldn't let you see him or anyone else for that matter. The only thing I can offer you is to let you see his ship. I'm sorry."

He considered his girlfriend's words for a while before he got her hand on his again, nodding.

"Lead the way then, Cal."

She smiled openly as she started running towards the secret cove they hid the ship at, Ace behind her, but they were never meant to reach the place. Since the ship was hidden in the tourist area, they had to pass through some of the most crowded areas of the Archipelago. Everything was good until, suddenly, Calypso started twitching visibly and hastening her steps. Her expression and the way she was glancing around made it look as if she was afraid of or hunted by something. It didn't take long for him to notice that the more people that were around them, the harder and more frequently she twitched, her hand tightly squeezing his own.

"Hey, are you alright?"

She didn't look at him when she answered, and her words were barely audible, sounding more like a mumble.

"I'm fine."

His previous frown returned as he kept sensing that something was terribly wrong with her, and he contemplated stopping her so they could talk about the sudden change in her behavior, only for him to be distracted by a commotion a little further ahead. He looked at the witch and noticed she was walking straight to it. Thinking she hadn't noticed it, he tried desperately to get her attention so he could either stop her or turn her around, only to realize it was too late. Pushing past a couple more people, they both found their way in front of a horrible sight. In the middle of a circle created by spectators was a lady of high birth, if her clothes and cared-for appearance had anything to indicate, pulling a frightened tiger cub that kept mewling and whining from a short leash and kicking it when it refused to move. Her bodyguards were around her, shoving back anyone who dared try and come closer to stop her. Ace looked once more at the little tiger and, although he felt angry at the way the woman was treating it, he knew that he could do nothing without possibly exposing himself, so he was more than surprised at the sight of his girlfriend fearlessly walking towards the older woman, avoiding the bodyguards with an ease he had never seen her carry before, until she stood right in front of her.

"This is no way to treat an animal. He is afraid and in pain, and you only make it worse. You need to be gentler with him if you really wish for him to listen to you."

The noble woman looked at the girl in front of her with rage in her eyes and motioned for her bodyguards to come closer.

"You, an unimportant common girl, shouldn't even address me in this manner, let alone order me around regarding my property!"

She reached up to give her a loud slap, causing Calypso's head to turn to the side, and she looked behind her to notice the bodyguards were at her side.

"Teach this stupid girl her place and make sure she will never speak to someone above her class again."

She turned around and started walking away, still dragging the poor animal behind her and kicking it to silence it, but stopped suddenly a few feet away.

"Actually, make it so she will be unable to speak to anyone anymore."

Hearing her words caused Ace's flames to appear in his fingers, but he fought them back. He knew they were exposed enough already and that causing a bigger commotion wouldn't end well for them and actually put them both in more danger. Wasting no time, he ran after Calypso and grabbed her, pushing her behind him and out of the guards' way.

"Hey now, there's no need for more violence. We are leaving."

The men took a few more steps towards them but suddenly stopped, shock and fear in their expressions, before slowly starting to move backwards. Confused but happy there was no further violence, the pirate turned to his girl, already speaking.

"See Cal, everything en-"

He stopped mid-sentence, as the sight in front of him was something that he was not expecting. There, right in front of him, was Calypso standing; only her hair was now the color of blood and her eyes a cold, emerald green that looked hungry for death. Yet, this was not what caused the young man to lose his speech. There was a purple, blue, and black mist-like aura coming out of the girl to slowly envelop the ground around her, spreading towards the retreating people and the noble woman who was now staring at her with a fear in her eyes that was matching the one in the eyes of her bodyguards, and slowly rising in a slow, smoky way upwards towards the sky, steadily embracing the area and the people. Just before he himself was completely lost in this unnatural and mysterious darkness, he heard the mournful caw of ravens and, looking one last time towards the witch, noticed the deadly smirk in her cherry-colored lips and heard her voice, twisted by bloodlust and seemingly transferred through the weird mist, whisper one word.

"Καληνύχτα."

Dictionary:

Καληνύχτα = Goodnight