Smokeless War - One Piece

(13)

"Good evening sir, can I fix you anything?" I inquired quietly after a moment of trying to still my heart. I can't take much of this appearing out of no where any longer.

"Fix me a steak, medium rare. Apologies for the late request." He replied, and for a moment I heard some hint of remorse. Where he'd been after training usually kept him until late in the night and though I was prepared to let my lack of energy take me into a dream or two, I couldn't bring myself to be upset.

The kitchen as far as I'd known was my space, as much as my room. More and more often he asked for me to make him something, and he was always polite about it.

I nodded and tied my hair up into a bun once again.

"I will be in the upper dining room." At first when he asked, it startled me because I wasn't aware he had his own dining room but now I knew the path quite well.

Bringing out a cut of steak, I lit a fire and seared it easily. I usually would bother to make mashed potatoes but small red potatoes in garlic would have to do.

I was seasoning the side of the steak in salt and pepper, basting it with butter and rosemary before a creeping sensation danced along my spine and alarm crept into my heart. There was no obvious reason for my panic, so I indulged myself in breathing in more deliberately and controlling my heartbeat to the best of my ability.

As I turned off the fire and reached up into the cupboard to find a suitable plate, hands found their way around me and I steeled myself to keep hold of the plate before setting it down on the counter, the lights in the kitchen flickering hauntingly. For the first time in a long time my ears found the sound of the pattering of rain building up to a lightning strike outside jarring.

"Hello pretty lady." A voice tickled my ear and someone held me in their grasp. "And who might you be?"

I closed my eyes, heart beating wildly in chest as I held my head away from the voice. "A maid of this castle."

"Wrong, Mihawk has never had a maid. Who, are, you?" He growled and impatiently demanded again, his hands squeezing my sides harshly, pressing in on my ribs.

Grimacing I tried to break out of the grasp but to no avail and I opened my mouth to answer before being cut off by another voice.

"She is my apprentice. Be mindful of your actions directed to her, Pirate." That was the closest thing to anger I'd ever heard from him and his voice chilled the room.

At once he broke his hold and I turned around to see literal darkness take form in front of Mihawk, his pitch black hair and eyes narrowing at the Warlord.

"No one told me there was another devil user on the island. And a maid, no excuse me, apprentice? The world has turned upside down or you've grown weak, Dracule." He sneered and eyed me for a moment. "Excuse my manners m'lady, Orion P. Octans at your service."

"Perseus." Mihawk stated in a steely voice, enough to stop his futile attempt to change what I saw of him now. As they walked out the room, I finally breathed a sigh of relief and went back to making his dish. When I went to deliver it, I found his dining room empty and was glad not to see the man made of darkness again.

Now every time the shadows stretch, I tense. And there is oh so many on an island consumed by rain and lightning. My room was my safe haven, at least for now. My bath which I desperately wished to take my time with went by too quickly, especially more so when my mind played tricks on me.

Nothing stopped the sleep that greeted me as soon as my head touched the pillow though and today my dreams were..rambunctious.

I'd never seen so much color in my life. And wild, loud colors. Bright orange, dark green, loud glaring yellow, and crimson red. My skin, clothes and everything around me was a mix match of colors. And then there were other people I didn't recognize.

Nakama. Crew. The word made the world go round at the moment because of the great pirate era. And it's all could think of when I saw the strange people before me. And in the midst was a colorless Mihawk, before the colors dancing on my skin spread to his.

I awoke, startled with sweat beaded across my forehead and pounding in my head. Stroking Alice's soft fur automatically I tried to recall the dream but it slipped through my fingers too easily. A bad start for the morning as I usually fell into such a heavy sleep I didn't have dreams at all, or they were short and memorable.

For the first time in the morning I heard a knock at the door. Even Samara didn't dignify me with a knock, so this time my heart raced even more.

When I finally fixed myself up to open the door I was almost frantic as I opened the door, only to look up to Mihawk.

"Good morning." I hesitantly spoke when he didn't, suddenly rubbing an itchy eye.

"Morning. I thought I'd inform you that training today may require the entire day." He observed my reaction before I nodded and failed to stifle a yawn. "I will meet you today for you to receive a real sword."

My jaw almost dropped and I held a smile in but it definitely showed through as I was so pleasantly surprised I could only nod as he walked away.

"He's different around you." The shadows did what I feared and materialized again, Orion's form looming over me in a moment as soon as Mihawk disappeared down the long hall and downstairs.

"Good morning, excuse me." I bowed and attempted to close my door which was promptly stopped by the icky material of the darkness.

"I think we got off on the wrong foot, I hope you'll forgive me." At my lack of response he only continued further. "He refused me as his apprentice when I was the second greatest swordsman to him, and I'm a blacksmith! Wielding a katana isn't even my full time job."

Second...greatest? I infinitesimally felt my eyebrow raise and his expression dropped.

"You don't believe me either? Okay, okay fine I exaggerated a bit but I'm still a great blacksmith. In fact, the only reason why I'm here is because the greatest swordsman in the world commissioned a sword from me! It's my magnum opus and I find he's handing it off to a girl. Talk about taboo." He murmured the last part but I only steeled my expression more.

"You look like him right now." Orion's expression fell again and I almost cracked a smile at his ridiculous behavior before I remembered I actually was an apprentice and the one time my teacher bothered to come to my door I'd be late of course.

"I beg your pardon, sir, but I must ask you to move your erm.."

"Hmph. Of course." They receded, and then so did he. I blinked at his figure and it dissipated like it'd never been there at all.

I had no time at all though to even start to ponder that...bipolar man. Where he had failed in his ambition, I had succeeded. No way would I let today be the day I'd be late.