Smokeless War - One Piece

(20)

a/n: thank you so much for 300 reads!!!!

"My..death bed?"

"Well yes! I thought you'd be in Jones' locker the way I was told." I only frowned more at her tone of voice. It felt unnatural for her to not crack a joke or smile yet.

"I'm here now, and I'd never be petty enough to be upset at you for long, friend." Holding back a pout, when I glanced at her again she was chuckling.

"Alright alright, I see now you're doing okay. Don't eat questionable things again, yea?"

I almost nodded before I immediately looked at her and before she could escape I just barely tickled her sides before she was uncontrollably laughing and she ran just out of reach before something clicked and she stopped just short of running into something, her gaze flicking up to Mihawk's still figure in another armchair nearer to the bed.

"Excuse me Sir, I didn't mean-!"

"As long as you respect the belongings in here, I do not mind you visiting her." He replied without a look in her direction before he rose. "I'll be back later."

Samara stayed quiet a few moments after he left and I found myself holding my breath at the look on her face when she turned around again.

"Oh my god, he's letting you stay in his room! Do you know what this means?" She bit her lip and gave me a nudge.

"No! That is not what it means! And this place is unimaginably large, I can't imagine this is his only room. You're such a naughty girl." I tsked while she chortled.

"I didn't say a thing that could be interpreted as naughty! You're so brazen for a lady, Maera."

"That's a big word Samara, I didn't know you knew what brazen meant." I fluttered my lashes at her and she gasped. Relief flooded me as we settled into normal banter again.

"Old Sammy was worried about you, ya know. But Mihawk wasn't about to let him visit you so soon." She smiled mischievously, her gaze tracing the items around the room and I could tell she had more to say but kept quiet.

"How are my babes?" I inquired nervously then and her eyebrows lifted like she'd forgotten something. "And Bella? I heard she's doing worse."

"The cats..I think someone has been feeding them or they're hunting for themselves, I just saw them today. And Bella..has had a physician by her side for the last two days. The poison weakened her immune system and I believe she's got something more than side effects of whatever she was given."

"There's a physician here?"

"You haven't seen him? I believe he looked after you first. I'm not sure though, Mihawk was very quiet about the details to Mr. Jackson." She looked me over for a moment and examined my arms with a tsk. "Look I can wrap my hand around your entire wrist! You need to eat more, ya little twig!"

I pinched her cheeks before she pinched mine back harder and I blew out a pained breath.

"I did eat just a bit ago, you weren't the one who made the food?" At my question she placed a hand over her mouth.

"He cooked! He cooked for you!" She squealed after a moment and I groaned, her gaze settling on me again unknown to me before she sighed and pat my shoulder. "I'll leave you be then, for now. I may come back to visit you but I get nervous when I think about coming to his room."

She had murmured the last part as she gave me wink before leaving. I almost asked her to take the plates to the kitchen but when I looked at where they were, I didn't find them and assumed between one of them they'd taken them.

That night I'd fallen asleep quickly again but my dreams were so very..realistic? I'd looked up through my lashes and saw a figure illuminated by the moonlight, the dark contrasting with the light.

Vaguely I felt myself murmur something incoherent, like I wasn't in control of my own words before I reached up slowly and touched his sleeve. My limbs were so very tired though, as if filled with sand and I almost found myself falling before he gently guided me back.

Gasping at the falling sensation I opened my eyes only to find it was the middle of the night and no time had passed as I met his irises at the end of the bed while he walked to the side I was sitting up at.

"Oh." I breathed a sigh, a hand on my beating heart. "I'm sorry, my nerves are getting the better of me."

"What do you know of Haki?" He inquired suddenly, sitting down easily in the chair he'd been in earlier.

"I do not know the word Sir." I answered honestly, something changing in his eyes at my words.

"You will."

After I recovered in a week's time, I found myself onto a much harder stage of training. That of Haki. I didn't possess the strong will to necessarily learn it at all, but Mihawk insisted quite strongly. He had me sparring him everyday and I scarcely had time to clean but I made sure nothing stayed dirty for long.

One day, something almost unpleasant happened. I'd gained the ability to foresee his attacks but I soon found myself seeing other things.

It felt now like a brush of death when I narrowly avoided his blade or fist, but this time I saw a glimpse of his mind as if scraping the very surface of his thoughts. Or maybe rather, the traits he was most. It felt like brushing feelings literally.

He must have seen the look on my face because he instantly stilled his attack and was looking at like he already knew what happened.

"It's unheard of to develop Haki this quickly." He stated when it was clear I wouldn't speak, my only answer a nod. He was composed of something very simple, but it was frightening none the less, the amount of pride he had. It was everything to him.

"I..can sense feelings to a small degree." I hesitated but stated anyways, eyeing his facial expressions at every word I said. "It's not very strong and I can't control when it happens."

My gaze drifted into the somewhat clear and light sky for once, admiring the fluffy clouds and foolishly wishing to reach out to touch them. The usual feelings of sweat rolling down my back now came back to my attention and I was uncomfortably aware of the sensation of it going down my spine.

When I focused on the situation again, I found his eyes had never left me and he stood expectantly.

"You make me repeat myself?" He inquired, and I felt a cheeks flush slightly.

"Excuse me Sir, I'd appreciate it."

Stepping forward he looked at me with no ill will but rather patience.

"I ask you attempt again. What are my feelings at this moment?" He expressed the least, I noticed, when he was feeling the most.

I blinked at his question and felt my pulse quicken, though the question was obviously not with motive behind it I still found myself unconsciously biting my lip with a dumbfounded answer on my tongue when a shrill scream interrupted the air.

When I reached the area leading up to the back doors of the castle, I was met with a terrified Samara dangling over a very very long fall to the ground hanging over the edge of a balcony from the highest floor of the castle.