A clash of Blades
a Shanks x fem!Mihawk One Shot
Because
I got into a genderbending mood and Shanks and Mihawk just happen tothe
first two victims I could think off. Not to mention that I ship them in
canon anyway!
I hope you will enjoy your read!
warnings: genderbending, angst, english not being the authors first language
A clash of Blades
When Mihawk returned to consciousness she did not remember what had knocked her out in the first place.
Wherever
she was, she wasn't bound and her sword was within arms reach - she
could feel its presence - even if her body protest at the mere thought
of moving.
Whoever had placed her here had not meant to restrain
her and for some reason she felt safe - it was ridiculous. Trying to get
a better grasp of her surroundings she glanced around from the corner
of her eye. She knew she was alone in the room and she could not see any
obvious Denden Mushis either. Either they were well hidden or they were
simply not there. The ground was swaying slightly and she reasoned that
she was on a ship but she couldn't be sure since she felt dizzy even
when lying down.
The room wasn't familiar either so if she was
indeed on board of a ship, it was unlikely that she had been on this one
before. Her instincts told he she was safe, but she found it more then a
little hard to believe, as a Shishibukai there were very few places
where she was safe.
Mihawk frowned and tried to recall what had happened. She did remember a man that had challenged her for her title.
The
man was supposed to be a capable swordsman if the rumors were to be
believed and when Mihawk had heard that he was going to challenge her
she had been filled with a sense of anticipation. The swordsman had
found her and they had prepared for their duel. She also remembered the
beginning of the battle.
But thing began to get blurry after his
blade had managed to graze her shoulder, from then on the only thing she
remembered was a sense of indignation mixed with fury. As if to help
sport her memory her shoulder throbbed and Mihawk grinded her teeth
while slowly forcing herself into a sitting position.
Every muscle
in her body protested and she was just about to give up and lie down
again when the door to the room swung open. Now it did not matter if she
could move, she simply had to.
Her hand was on her blade and she
was on her feet, ready to defend herself before the door was even
halfway open. Had her sword been missing, she would have attacked then,
but since that wasn't the case she waited.
It was a good thing she
did, because the person who opened the door was one of the few people
that she was quite sure would not take advantage of her weakened form.
"Woah. Hawkeye."
Shanks
raised his arm in a gesture of surrender, making clear that he would
not attack her. And while Mihawk was more then aware of the fact that he
would not need his arm to subdue her, weakened as she was, she still
found herself relaxing. Shanks was not the type of person that took
advantage of another persons weakness unless it was to protect his crew
and since she had made no move against them, she should be safe. He was
one of the few people who was safe under most circumstances after all.
Immediately
all the strength left her body and she could barely keep her blade from
hitting the floor as her arms slackened. Mihawk sat down slowly still
watching Shanks warily, but the man made no move to come closer.
His
expression was unusually solemn and as he watched her with attentive
eyes there was something else in there that she could not quite place.
"You should lie down again."
Even
his voice was devoid of the usual cheer and she found herself following
what was obviously and order, voiced as an suggestion.
As soon as
she was back in the bed he closed the door behind himself and stepped
up to the bed, letting himself fall into the chair by her bedside.
"Do you remember what happened?"
His
voice was calm level and it unnerved her. Shanks was usually a very
cheerful person that would banter even in the fiercest of battles. She
could count the number of times she had seen him like that using her
fingers.
"I remember being challenged and the beginning of the duel."
Her voice sounded calmer then she felt, she hated not remembering, it was one of the reasons she did not overindulge in drinks.
"And after that?"
Mihawk
frowned trying to remember. A numbing burn in her shoulder, the
challengers laughing face, rage mixed with disgust, blood splashing her
face, the challenger dead on the ground in front of her and after
that... nothing but a flash of red.
"I know that I won."
She had a suspicion as to what had happened.
"Three weeks ago."
Mihawk blinked.
"What?"
Shanks grin was sharp.
"Your duel, if you want to call it that, it took place three weeks ago."
Three weeks.
She had never been out of commission for that long, but if her suspicion was correct it would make sense.
"It was poison wasn't it?"
Shanks nodded, his face still a mask of stone.
"Yes. A pretty harsh one too. It attacks the muscle tissue."
And in essence the heart was but a muscle.
"He challenged you to a sword duel?"
The disgust in Shanks words was clear.
Mihawk nodded.
"I guess I owe you one."
He snorted.
"You owe me nothing. Just don't do it again."
No it was her time to snort, even if it made her body hurt.
"You should know better than that Redhair."
There was silence for a moment.
"You would have died Dracule."
His
voice broke slightly and she blinked. It was rare for him to call her
by that name, mostly he used Hawkeye and otherwise he called her Mihawk.
But Dracule... he was probably the only person in the world who called
her by that name and she did not know how to feel about it.
"How did you find me?"
Shanks
reached into his sash and pulled out a small slip of paper. It was
frayed around the edges, and far, far smaller then she remembered it
being. A vivre card. Her vivre card most likely, it had been years since
she had given it to him.
"I see."
Shanks fingers caressed
the little slip of paper, his eyes still displaying that emotion that
she could not place, before he put it away again.
"I didn't die and I can't say that it's the first time I had a brush with death."
He nodded and gave her a weak smile.
"True enough. At least you didn't loose any limbs, eh?"
She frowned at him, but he simply chuckled.
"Well I'm glad your awake again. Seeing you quiet is one thing, but I missed that frowned of yours."
Her frown deepened causing Shanks to chuckle again.
"Yep, that one."
He
leaned back in his chair and the set of his shoulders seemed to relax,
he seemed perfectly at home, sitting in this room at her bedside. She
wondered if he had done so while she was unconscious, but pushed that
thought aside.
"Where am I anyway? This is not your ships infirmary."
He
blinked at her as if it should be obvious, but then gave her a wide
smile. The smile that she liked far more on his face then the solemn one
he had worn earlier.
"Well, in my cabin. I figured you wouldn't like sleeping in a room where everyone can come in."
He was right about that.
"So when he found you and brought you on board I told them to take you here."
Something
in his expression had tightened again, the the hand resting on his leg
clenched momentarily, then the goofy grin was back.
"The sheets should be pretty clean. Well the ones from the infirmary didn't fit, so those a mine, but they are fresh."
Mihawk
simply nodded. It wouldn't really have bothered her if they weren't
fresh. She had slept on bloodstained grounds and in mud, slightly dirty
sheets were preferable to that.
Not that she thought Shanks sheets were ever really dirty, despite being a drunkard he took care of his personal hygiene.
But
maybe that was the reason her instincts had told her that she was safe.
The smell of the sheets had been familiar and not in a bad way.
Despite being one of the most annoying people Mihawk knew, he was likely the only one she would call a friend.
That
probably was the reason she kept on returning to his side even if she
could no longer cross blades with him. Shanks would always welcome her
with a smile and treat her like a friend and not like the blade she had
forged herself to be.
She felt a little bit like a woman when he
treated her like that and part of her loathed it. Mihawk could never
allow herself to be a woman. She had given up on in when she had grasped
the blade and declared that she would be the strongest swordsman in the
world.
She could still have turned back after that. She would
have never forgiven herself for it, but there had still been the
possibility. When she had finally claimed the title however that
possibility had vanished as well.
She had lived by the blade, she had lived for the blade and the moment she lost her title she would die by the blade as well.
Maybe
that was were the profound sense of relief came from, she could still
die by the blade and not by some half asses swordsmaster who thought
that coating his blade in poison in a duel based on skill was
appropriate.
Mihawk gave a tired sight and glanced at Shanks
again. He was still quietly sitting in the chair by the bed when he
noticed her gaze he gave her a slight smile, but there was still
something off about it. It bothered her, but the tiredness was creeping
up on her and she was sure that she would fall asleep any second.
Shanks seemed to notice and his smile softened.
"Sleep tight Mihawk. I'll keep you safe."
She wanted to argue and tell him that she did not need his protection, but sleep claimed her before she could.
–
They
had been having another party when Shanks felt a shiver run down his
spine. It was as if all of his instincts were telling him to do
something even if he had no idea what that something was. But despite
not knowing what he was supposed to do, he sat down his bottle and let
his hand fall down to the hilt of his sword.
Immediately all of
his crewmembers around him were on guard, but judging by their searching
looks, they too did not know what was wrong and could not find anything
wrong in their surroundings.
Driving by instinct he slid his hand
into his sash and pulled out the one vivre card he had taken to keeping
on his person years ago. As soon as he had it in his fingers he knew
that he had found the source of his unease and when he looked at it he
knew that it was good that he had not brushed his instincts aside.
The vivre card of his former rival had shrunk to more then half of it's original size and it was still smoking.
He
was on his feet and on the way back to the ship before he could think
and his crew followed behind him, alerted by their captains obvious
hurry.
Ben, Yasopp and Lucky, the tree people of his crew who knew
whose vivre card it was, were exchanging glances the same way they
always did whenever they found him staring at it. Then Ben took command.
"Ready the ship for departure! We will leave immediately."
The
navigator, a tall man, easily twice as tall as Shanks came up to them,
when his eyes fell on the vivre card in his captains hands he nodded
sharply.
Finding a person that was at the same island as you with a
vivre card wasn't too hard, but navigating the treacherous seas of the
grandline, especially those of the New World was another thing
altogether.
Their navigator had done it before, but he too had
noticed the fact that the card was getting smaller as they spoke. They
had a time limit to keep and even if most of them did not know to whom
the infamous card belonged to, everyone had seen their captain stare at
it at one time or another, and whoever that person to him the card would
lead them was, he or she was obviously important to their captain.
It
took them longer to reach the island where the vivre card was pointing
to then Shanks would have liked, the small slip of paper that had once
been around the size of the flat of his hand was smaller then the tip of
his thumb by now and they couldn't even be sure if this was the right
island since the vivre card could also be pointing to an island behind
the current one.
As they came closer to the shore Shanks allowed
his eyes to roam the coastline. If they were on the right island and at
the right port, then he should find Mihawks small coffin boat here.
Since the other port on this island was considerably bigger, and often
swarming with marines due to the closeness of the G5 base, it was
unlikely however that Mihawk would have chosen the other port to leave
her ship, Shishibukai or not.
Luck seemed to be on their side
however, as Shanks spied the little ship at the far of side of the port,
nearly hidden by the vegetation. Gesturing for his navigator to get
them to anchor he jumped from the ship onto the port, scattering the
sailors that had warily been watching the arrival of the big pirate
ship, Yasopp and Lucky following behind.
Shanks wasn't paying
attention to his surroundings, his eyes were fixed on the small, still
smoking slip of paper in his hands and had someone stepped in his way
then he would have pushed them aside, no matter the consequences.
The
vivre card let them out of the small town and into the forest that was
covering most of the island. It wasn't a dense forest though, the
underbrush was sparse and sunlight easily shone through the treetops.
Shanks
was pretty sure that he had an idea why Mihawk was here and apparently
close to death door. And island like this, especially this side, with
its sparse population and the big forest was a good place for a duel to
take place if one made or found a clearing.
Shanks was also pretty
sure that he had heard rumors a while back that a swordsman was out to
challenge Mihawk. Had she dueled him and won, but was badly wounded? Or
had the challenger defeated her and left her to die? There were worse
things one could do to a defeated woman.
Things that Mihawk seemed to
have forgotten about long ago, but Shanks had been very aware of since
he had been a teenager and a particularly vicious battle had shredded
her shirt.
Unknowingly his footsteps became faster as he made his
way trough the forest. He stopped short however when he stepped into a
clearing and took a look at the scene before him.
All around the
ceiling there were slashed up tress and in the center of it was Mihawk,
her sword at ready and standing absolutely still. She was bleeding on
her left shoulder and her gaze, that fixed itself onto them as soon as
they stepped out from the forest was hazy and unfocused.
She readied her stance and Shanks could tell that she was about to attack them, obviously not recognizing them.
"Mihawk."
She stilled at the sound of her name.
He walked forward ready to defend himself should she attack.
"Don't you recognize me?"
He made his voice sound teasing even if he did not feel like teasing her at all.
"It's me. Shanks."
She
blinked and he saw how her fingers clenched around the handle of Yoru.
By now he was well within the range of her sword, but he walked on until
he stood right in front of her. If he reached out he would be able to
touch her, yet she did not attack.
"Shanks?"
Her voice was faint.
"Yes."
"Good."
Mihawk
nodded slightly as if to herself then she swayed and fell forward
against Shanks who slowly lowered her down on the ground. Her breathing
was uneven and sweat was gathering on her forehead.
He wanted to
pick her up and rush to the ship, but as he knelt down next to her, he
realized that he couldn't. It was then that Shanks regretted loosing his
arm for the second time in his life. Not saving Luffy, he would never
regret saving that boy, but couldn't he have used Haki to subdue the
seaking?
He had to step aside.
"Yasopp. Take her to my cabin and have the doctor treat her there I will come as soon as I am finished here."
The
sharpshooter nodded and picked the unconscious woman up from the ground
and rushed towards the ship, Shanks wanted to follow but he stayed
behind and took a closer look at the scene.
It was obvious from
the deep gashes lining the trees and the ground that a battle had taken
place some of the marks were familiar, Mihawks handiwork, but the others
were done by somebody he had not seen before. Shanks looked at the man
whose bloody remains where leaning against a broken tree, where one of
Mihawks attacks had seemingly send him, then his eyes found what he was
looking for.
The challengers sword.
Carefully he picked it
up and examined the blade. It was fine craftsmanship and if he
identified it correctly it was one of the fifty Ryo Wazamono Grade
swords, but that was not what drew his attention. It was what was on the
blade that held all of it, next to the blood, most likely Mihawks, she
had had a badly bleeding wound on her shoulder, there was another
slightly purple sheen.
Shanks had seen such a sheen before, but
only on the daggers that Buggy had used years ago. Poison. He felt his
lips curly into a sneer.
What kind of swordsman coated his sword
in poison when he challenged another to a duel of skills, more so, when
he challenged the worlds best swordsman for his title?
That alone showed that he was not worth the title.
"Poison, eh?"
Lucky had stopped shewing on his meat and Shanks gave a curt nod.
"Why don't you take it and that one."
He gestured to Kokuto Yoru that was still lying on the ground where Mihawk had fallen against him.
"Back to the doctor. It should help him identify the poison."
Shanks glanced at Lucky again, but the man simply took another bite of his meat.
"I will take care of the rest here captain."
Giving
a sharp nod he picked up the black sword and made his way back to the
ship. The weight of the sword in his hand reminded him of the fact that
Mihawk despite her stature was a swordsman whose focus was on strength
instead of speed like most female swordsmen did. The fact that she was
not only strong but also faster then most was one of the reason that she
had held the title for many years now.
When he came back to the
port it was devoid off all sailors, but Shank noticed some people
looking out from behind the curtain of their windows. Taking a deep
breath to calm himself down, he adjusted his grip on Yoru before jumping
abroad the Red Force where Ben was already waiting for him.
"They took her to your cabin, the doctor is patching her up."
Shanks nodded and made his was below deck, Ben following behind.
–
Shanks
had hoped that by the time he arrived in his cabin the doctor would
already be waiting for him and inform him that the poison was easily
taken care of and it was only a matter of time until his once upon a
time rival and now friend, was on her feet again.
Judging by the strained look on the mans face that was not the case however.
Their
doctor, a man whose specialties where stitching up sword and gunshot
wounds as well as poisons, had curtly informed him that he had never
seen this poison before and that there was pretty much nothing he could
do unless he had an sample of the poison.
Wordless Shanks handed
him the dead mans sword and was promptly pushed aside as the doctor
rushed into his laboratory to analyze the sample.
Ben stayed behind watching Shanks carefully as the captain fidgeted.
"Need me to get you something?"
Shanks shook his head and when he spoke his voice was a lot more steady then he had anticipated.
"No. Go try to help doc, you are good with the chemistry stuff right?"
Ben
gave him a nod that he only registered from the corner of his eye and
left despite knowing that he would not be a help to the doctor at all.
Shanks barely noticed it, his whole attention was focused on the form of
his rival.
The doctor had cut open her shirt to have easier
access to the wounds as well as the chest bindings to ease her breathing
so Shanks pulled up the blanked over her to give her some modesty. Then
he removed her shoes, simply to have something to do.
Mihawk did
not seem to register any of it, in fact Shanks would have believed her
to be dead if it weren't for the labored breathing and the occasional
shiver that wrecked her body.
Shanks sat down into the chair by
the desk and resisted the urge to pull it over to his bed as he did not
want to be in the way when the doctor returned.
And the doctor
would return any moment. He would not have any problem analyzing the
poison and this was not something Shanks told himself to keep calm. It
was a fact.
After all analyzing substances was the docs devil
fruit ability and frankly the amount of information the man could gleam
from the most innocent things was terrifying.
Just as Shanks was
about to get up to push the hair out of Mihawks face, simply to do
something, the doctor reappeared, a serious look on his face and a two
bags of medical equipment with him, Ben following behind.
The doctor put down his equipment and then turned to Shanks.
"You do have the same blood type as her, right?"
Shanks nodded. When he first found out he though it was funny, since they also shared the same birth date.
The doctor seemed pleased at nodded to Ben.
"You know what to do."
–
When
the doctor was finally finished with whatever he had done to get rid of
that damned poison that was transported by blood, but attacked the
muscle tissue, Shanks was feeling slightly lightheaded and knew that it
was due to the fact that the doctor and Ben had been forced to draw more
of his blood then was usually advisable.
"Alright. There is nothing more I can do captain. The rest is up to her."
Shanks nodded and got up to drag the chair over to the bed. Doc frowned.
"You are not going to leave I take it?"
Shanks shook his head, but gave no vocal answer as he sank down into the chair again.
Ben and the doctor exchanged a look, but then Ben shrugged.
"I will get you something to eat captain and you will eat it."
The redhead nodded and prepared for a hopefully not too long wait.
–
Shanks
hope turned out for naught however as hours turned into days and days
into weeks and Mihawk stayed unconscious. The red haired captain spend
this time in a daze. He had tried to do his usual work, but he could not
concentrate no matter how important the matter, so in the end he left
it to Ben, knowing full well that the man could take care of it and
returned to his cabin.
While he probably could have pretended that
he could not work anywhere but in his cabin that wasn't the truth. The
problem was that he could not bring himself to care about anything more
then strictly necessary because his mind kept drifting back to the
female swordsman who was still unconscious in his bed.
This was
not the first time he had to deal with a gravely injured member of his
crew, even his strongest had spend some time in coma after a dangerous
fight, it had never thrown him so off course before though.
At
first he had tried to convince himself that his extreme worry was
because he had never seen Mihawk in such a position before, but fact was
that he did. He had seen her injured before, a couple of times he had
even been the one who had injured her.
Sitting by her bedside was
the place he felt most comfortable so this was where he spend his time.
It was a good thing that the chair he had in his cabin was a comfortable
one since he even slept in it now.
The first couple of nights he
had tried to sleep in a hammock with his crew or in one of the beds in
the infirmary, but the rest was hardly restful and he found himself back
in the chair by her bedside only a couple of hours later.
So he had resigned himself to waiting for her to wake up, because he could simply not believe that she wouldn't.
It was the first time that he left his cabin and thus her bedside for longer than strictly necessary when she finally woke up.
He
had pushed the door open, expecting nothing but her still unmoving form
on the bed, when he froze mid movement as his instincts screamed for
him to be on his guard.
As soon as the door was open however he
knew that it wasn't a real danger, but simply a swordswoman who felt
cornered. He would have liked to rush forward and pull her into a hug,
but he knew that that would be a very bad idea so he grinned and tried
to put her at peace.
"Woah. Hawkeye."
Raising his hand in a
gesture of surrender he watched as recognition flickered through her
eyes, shortly followed by obvious relief. Alone the fact that he could
read her that easily made him realize that despite the fact that she was
awake, she was far from back to normal.
Mihawks muscles
slackened, she lowered her sword and sat down on the bed, her eyes
however stayed on him making it obviously that she was still wary
despite his presence. It hurt more then it should have.
Especially combined with the fact that she looked so terrible vulnerable.
"You should lie down again."
He
was surprised that she followed his suggestion. Slowly he made his way
back over to the bed and plopped into the chair that he had gotten so
used to over the last three weeks.
He swallowed and tried to keep calm and level, showing emotion, especially concern was not something Mihawk would appreciate.
"Do you remember what happened?"
She
seemed unnerved for some reason and Shanks wondered if she was
struggling to remember, when she spoke her voice sounded calm however.
"I remember being challenged and the beginning of the duel."
It wasn't a very detailed answer however and it confirmed Shanks suspicion that his former rivals memory was spotty at best.
"And after that?"
She frowned and rolled her left shoulder where she had been hurt.
"I know that I won."
Shanks took that to mean that she did not remember anything specific, but knowing her she had at least a general idea.
She was frowning obviously still digging through her memory but seemingly not overly bothered by her state.
"Three weeks ago."
The woman blinked obviously taken aback by his words.
"What?"
He knew that his smile wasn't a nice one.
"Your duel, if you want to call it that, it took place three weeks ago."
The frowned on her face deepened and something dark flickered through her eyes.
"It was poison wasn't it?"
Shanks nodded and tried to keep from snarling.
"Yes. A pretty harsh one too. It attacks the muscle tissue."
Had
they found her even half an hour later, the doctor would not have been
able to help her. Even as it was, she would have to work hard to get
back into shape, especially her arm which had been most affected by the
poison.
Shanks was pretty sure that her opponent had been a challenger but he had to be sure.
"He challenged you to a sword duel?"
He didn't even try to hide his disgust at such underhand techniques.
Mihawk nodded.
"I guess I owe you one."
He snorted.
"You owe me nothing. Just don't do it again."
Now
she snorted even if it make her wince slightly as her body protested
even this slight movement and Shanks felt his lips twitching knowing
what she would say next.
"You should know better then that Redhair."
Shanks
nodded to himself, noting the term of address and wondered if he should
allow her to put more distance between them. He decided against it and
hoped that she would not begrudge him for it.
"You would have died Dracule."
His
voice cracked despite his best effort to prevent it. He should have
known however that when he tried to keep her from pushing him away he
would get more involved as well. He rarely called her by her first name,
mostly because they had always tried to keep some distance between
them. They had known each other for years and he was pretty sure that he
was one of the people she was closest to, despite her efforts to not
get to close.
Shanks tried to get his feelings back under control and nearly missed the emotions fluttering across her face for a moment.
"How did you find me?"
Her voice was unusually soft.
Shanks
reached into his sash and pulled out Mihawks vivre card, something he
had done many times in his life, especially in the last couple of weeks,
assuring himself that Mihawk was still alive. It had given him hope to
see that the vivre card, while still smoking slightly, was no longer
shrinking.
"I see."
Shanks kept the card in his hand a while
longer. Had it not been for this little slip of paper he would have
lost her. He might have felt uncomfortable but he wouldn't have known
why, he wouldn't have known where to go. It might just be his new
treasure.
He put the card away and Mihawk spoke again.
"I didn't die and I can't say that it's the first time I had a brush with death."
He nodded and gave her a weak smile. He knew that, he had been the reason for some of them.
"True enough. At least you didn't loose any limbs, eh?"
It
was meant as a joke, but he should have known she would not take it
like that. She had never liked him joking about the loss of his arm. Her
frown wasn't unexpected but it made him smile.
"Well I'm glad your awake again. Seeing you quiet is one thing, but I missed that frown of yours."
Her frown deepened and this time Shanks could not fight the chuckle, it was a familiar expression, one he had missed dearly.
"Yep, that one."
Shanks leaned back in his chair again and made himself comfortable.
"Where am I anyway? This is not your ships infirmary."
He
blinked at her in surprise for a moment. Then he gave her a big grin
remembering that despite meeting up with his crew more often then even
with the marines, she had never been to his cabin.
"Well, in my
cabin. I figured you wouldn't like sleeping in a room where everyone can
come in. So when we found you and brought you on board I told them to
take you here."
He did not tell her that he had not wanted someone
else to see her so vulnerable, nor did he point out that he had to get
someone else to carry her no matter how much he would have preferred to
do it himself. Those were not things she needed to know.
"The sheets should be pretty clean. Well the ones from the infirmary didn't fit, so those a mine, but they are fresh."
They
had also been changed while she had been lying there, but he wasn't
really trying to convey information to her, but to put her at ease so
her serious frown was slightly humorous.
Silence reigned between
them and Shanks slipped back into observing her as he had done in the
past weeks. It was obvious to see that her thoughts were wandering and
as he watched several emotions flickered over her face. He wondered what
she was thinking about that made her features soften like that.
When
she came back to herself and gave a nearly inaudible sigh before
looking up at him Shanks wanted to tell her how much he had worried
about her, wanted to hug her, but in the end he just smiled slightly.
As
a response she frowned again and seemed to contemplate something, but
her thought progress did not seem to get too far as sleep creeped up on
her and made her blink tiredly several times.
It was rare to see Mihawk like that and Shanks smiled fondly.
"Sleep tight Mihawk. I'll keep you safe."
She did not answer him, but from her steady breathing he could tell that she had fallen asleep again.
For
a moment Shanks listened to her steady breathing before he gave a deep
heartfelt sight. It felt as if an incredible weight had been lifted from
his shoulder.
She had woken up. She had really woken up.
Shanks
could still hear the doctors words ring in his ears. He would never
forget the terror that had gripped him when the man had informed him
that the chances of Mihawk waking up again were getting slimmer with
each passing day.
Picking up Mihawks sword and placing it onto the
bed next to her, he sagged in his chair and drank in her features. Her
face for once framed by her dark hair, that was usually in a french
braid to keep it out of her way, her slim eyebrows and her sharp chin.
Just
sitting there watching her sleep made Shanks feel strangely content and
he felt the sleep that would not come to him since Mihawk had been hurt
claim it's due.
–
The next time Mihawk woke up she not only
felt considerably better, she was also calm, knowing full well where
she was. Whether Shanks promise of keeping her safe had anything to do
with her restful sleep she did not know and she didn't want to either.
Her
stomach grumbled distracting her from her thoughts and the woman sat up
slowly, not wanting to push her body further than it could go when she
did not have to. Letting her gaze roam around the room and she felt her
lips twitch slightly as it landed on Shanks.
He was fast asleep
and still sitting in the chair by her bedside. Given his posture she was
pretty sure he would have a stiff neck when he woke up. He obviously
had practice in sleeping on the chair though since his posture while
uncomfortable was not awkward.
For a moment she thought about
waking him and asking him where she could get something to eat, but the
deep circles underneath his eyes disabused her from that notion. It did
not really matter, Mihawk had been on the Red Force a couple of times,
she would find her way to the kitchen.
Getting up from the bed
slowly and carefully, mindful of her still weak body, Mihawk adjusted
the clothes she was wearing, then she braided her hair with quick
practices movements. Over the years it had become as much of a routine
to her as brushing her teeth. Given by the style of the shirt it
probably belonged to Shanks, though now that she was wearing it the
buttons on the front were not hanging wide open. Automatically her
fingers clasped around the hilt of her sword, but as she attempted to
pick Yoru up her muscles screamed with exertion and she was forced stop
her attempts. She could not lift her sword.
A wave of unease
rolled over her, it had been a long time since she had felt vulnerable.
She wondered if her body could even take a single fight right now.
Mihawk limbs felt heavy but still she gripped Yorus hilt again and
braced herself for the sword weight before trying again.
Slowly the blade rose from where it had been lying on the bed and relief nearly made the swordswoman drop it.
Whatever
the poison combined with the three weeks of inactivity had done to her
body was bad, but as long as she could still lift her sword, she was
confident that she could recover.
Yoru was a very heavy blade
after all and when she had first gotten it it had taken her quite some
time to get used to its weight.
Had her stomach not reminded her
of her original reason for getting out of bad Mihawk would probably gone
right back to training to get her body back into shape.
As it was
she had to get something to eat first it would not help her should she
collapse from exhaustion simply because her body did not have enough
energy.
Deciding to leave her sword behind since in her current
condition it would hinder her more then it would help, she let her eyes
wander around the room. The object she had been searching for was lying
on the desk on the other side of the room. Carefully and as silently as
possible she made her way over to it.
It was her cross shaped
necklace. While the Kogata was not really a weapon meant for fighting it
was better then nothing and it felt familiar hanging around her neck.
Mihawk
did not really expect to have to fight while she was still on Shanks
ship, but without her weapon she felt naked. It was bad enough that she
could not take Yoru with her and going unarmed was something she had not
done since she had entered the Grandline for the first time.
With steps far surer then she felt the swordswoman made her way out of Shanks cabin.
She
had barely closed the door behind her however, when she came upon the
first member of the Red Hair pirates. It was one of the crew members
that Mihawk knew pretty well because of her duels with Shanks some years
ago. The doctor.
The man was one of the older members of Shanks
crew, his hair had already been starting to gray when he joined the Red
hair pirates and by now all of his hair was slate gray. He noticed
Mihawk as soon as he stepped around the corner. Maybe he had even known
she was there beforehand, the pleased smile on his face could mean both.
"It's good to see you up and about Hawkeye."
The young woman nodded politely and her stomach grumbled, and she suppressed the urge to blush as the doctor chuckled slightly.
"Hungry,
huh? Well the both we have been feeding you wouldn't fill you up.
Follow me to the infirmary, I will ask someone to bring you something to
eat."
"Thank you."
The mans smile was warm and pleased.
"It's my job."
Asking
someone to get her something to eat apparently meant grabbing the next
crew member that crossed their path and ordering him to get food or
else, the action was a little add odds with the image the swordswoman
had cultivated of the doctor from all of their previous interactions.
She should have known better though, given that out of the four doctors
that sailed under Shanks flag, he was the one in charge.
People who were in charge rarely were polite, even if they were friendly.
The
infirmary of the Red Force was well stocked with several, surprisingly
comfortable looking beds. Still Mihawk was glad that Shanks had insisted
on her being brought to his cabin since the infirmary was a wide, open
room that allowed the doctors space to move around. The beds were lining
the walls, but that did not make it better.
She would have been
fine staying here when she was unconsciousness, but Mihawk was pretty
sure that she would not have been able to fall asleep again once she had
woken up, Shanks sitting next to her bed or not.
The doctor gestured for her to sit down on one of the beds and pulled a curtain, so people would not be able to see them.
"Show
me your shoulder please, It was the only real wound you had and most of
the poison was there, I want to check if there is still a residue."
Mihawk
nodded, unbuttoned her shirt and pulled it down over the bandaged
shoulder. The bandages were clean and from what she could remember the
wound had not been very deep, the only reason it had nearly taken her
life had been the poison.
The doctor removed the bandages from her
shoulder and upper arm and she got the first real look at the wound. It
had barely begun to heal and Mihawk frowned it should have healed a lot
more then that, after all the duel had been three weeks ago. Whatever
that poison had been it had been throughout.
"Ah it is finally starting to heal."
The
doctors sounded genuinely pleased as he reached out and his hand
started to glow. For a moment she was startled, but then Mihawk
remembered Shanks once telling her that his super doctor had analytical
hands.
"We could not separate the poison from your blood so we had
to replace yours. It was quite the troublesome process especially since
there are only two people on this ship with the same blood time as you
and one of them was ill."
They had replaced her blood? Mihawk
shuddered at the thought. She had been given other peoples blood before,
but replacing it outright... that did not sound healthy, especially not
when there was only one donor.
Mihawk suppressed a sigh. She knew
one person on this crew with the same blood type as hers, and she was
quite sure he had not been ill.
"I see."
The doctor gave her
a kind smile while he moved over to his desk and started to write
something done and Mihawk suspected that he had an idea where her
thoughts had wandered.
"I owe you my thanks."
The doctor looked up from the sheet on which he had been scribbling, a small frown on his face.
"To a point I suppose."
Mihawk raised an eyebrow in question and the man elaborated.
"I would have helped you had I come across you, I am a doctor after all, but if it hadn't been for the captain."
The elder shrugged.
"We
wouldn't have been searching for you. He was the one who canceled the
party and ordered us to get moving. He was also the one who found you
and brought in that mans sword. Without the original poison I would not
have been able to do much."
He gave her a slight smile.
"So I guess it was me who treated you, but the one who saved your life was the captain."
Mihawk simply nodded.
"Yes, but you still have my thanks."
The doctors looked at her again and then gave her a smile tinted with an emotion that she did not understand.
"You are welcome."
He
rebandaged her shoulder and Mihawk buttoned up her shirt again, as she
was finished the doctor handed her a slip of paper. Her eyes scanned the
list and widened slightly. It was the damage the poison had done to her
body and it explained that her brush with death had been even more
severe then she had thought after what Shanks had told her.
Mihawk
was so absorbed in the information that she only realized that her food
had arrived when the doctor held the spoon right in her field of
vision. Startled she looked up and met the doctors gaze, he gave her a
kind smile.
"Eat up recovery is going to be though."
Mihawk
nodded and grasped the spoon before starting to eat thinking about what
would have happened had Shanks and his crew arrived even an hour later.
She
was prepared to die in a fair battle, beaten by an opponent with
superior skill, dying because of anything less was not something she had
ever though about. Afters he had finished the meal the doctor told her
to leave the utensils on the table.
"I will walk you back to the captain cabin it wouldn't do for you to get injured now."
Mihawk
doubted that she would get injured on the way back to Shanks cabin, but
she choose not to argue. It took them a surprisingly long time to get
back, mostly due to the fact that her legs were already starting to get
tired and she could not walk very fast.
Something in the doctors
gaze when he walked calmly next to her made her believe that he had
known that she was going to have trouble and his presence gave her a
good reason not to walk her usual brisk pace.
When they finally
arrived at the cabin Mihawk pushed open the door, half expecting Shanks
to wake up at the sound, but he continued to sleep peacefully. A quite
chuckle behind her caused her to turn around.
The doctor was looking at his captain with a fond expression on his face.
"He got awfully good at sleeping in that chair lately."
Mihawk blinked.
"Lately?"
The smile the doctor gives her is very kind, almost fatherly, but there was also some amusemnt in his words.
"Yes. In the last three weeks in fact. He rarely ever left your side."
The smile fades and a serious light entered the older mans eyes.
"Especially
since it was unsure whether you would wake up at all Hawkeye, you were
alive but I could not be sure how much damage to poison had already
done. Shanks..."
He trailed off for a second, then he shook his head.
"He was terribly worried. But never mind that."
He made a shooing motion with his hand.
"You should go back to bed. And do take the training slowly."
Mihawk
nodded, but not in agreement, she knew full well that she would push
herself anyway and judging by the exasperation on the doctors face he
knew at as well.
He left closing the door softly behind him and
Mihawk silently made her way over to the bed, careful not to disturb the
sleeping Shanks, her mind carefully blank.
It was only after she
had laid down and was trying to fall asleep that the doctors words
caught up with her. Shanks had been genuinely worried for her. She had
guessed so as well when she had seen him after she had first woken up,
he had seemed relieved, but the level of worry the doctor had implied.
She hadn't expected that.
She had been his rival and after their
rivalry had ended with the loss of his arm they had become friendly
acquaintances, maybe even friends. Friends worried for each other so it
would have been okay if it wasn't for the strange feeling in the pit of
her stomach.
Mihawk had known that Shanks was more important for
her then just a general acquaintance for a long time, she had already
allowed him to get under her guard but if he got any deeper she would
have to cut him off. She would not, could not allow such feelings, it
would only end badly and that was one experience she did not care to
make. Shanks was her former rival, possibly a friend and he would stay
just that.
She would do everything to keep it that way. She felt
vulnerable yet strangely safe and she hated feeling that way with a deep
sigh she turned her back to Shanks ignoring the protest of her
shoulder. And she hated remembering his words of protection and the
feeling of safely that wells up inside her.
Still Mihawk falls
asleep, her back still turned towards Shanks, trying to block him from
her thoughts, yet it is his deep steady breathing that lulled her to
sleep.
–
When Shanks opened his eyes he could already feel
the crick in his neck and with uttermost certainty he knew that he would
not get rid of it for the rest of the day. Still he stretched slightly
and rolled his neck, suppressing a wince at the popping sound.
"Sounds painful."
Shanks blinked and grinned as he realized who the speaker was, Mihawk who was awake and sitting up in the bed.
"I wouldn't call it painful, but it certainly isn't pleasant."
The
young woman gave a sound of agreement and Shanks watched puzzled as
emotions flashed across her face for a moment before disappearing behind
her mask again.
"I should probably let myself be transferred to the infirmary."
That stumped him.
"Why?"
She looked at him and raised one single eyebrow in challenge.
"Because
this is your bed? And there is no reason for me to take it. I
appreciate you lending it to me when I was unconscious, but know that I
awake again there is no reason for me to continue to do so. I don't plan
on staying for long anyways."
The last part decided it.
"No."
She simply looked at him.
"No?"
Shanks nodded.
"No you can take my bed. It doesn't bother me. I'm perfectly fine with sleeping in a chair."
There
was no way she would be back in top shape anytime soon, Shanks had seen
the doctors report too and he would not have her running around in the
New World, barley capable of lifting her own sword. Yet he was quite
aware of the fact that she would not spend more time in the infirmary
then absolutely needed, the only way to keep her here longer was to let
her have his bed. So she would have his bed. He could deal.
"That's not exactly smart. You only have one arm left, a stiff set of shoulders could kill you."
Shanks grinned unrepentantly.
"You will stay here until you are back into top shape."
Mihawk frowned and Shanks sighed.
"I can sleep in the infirmary if it bothers you."
He
could understand ifs he found the though of someone sleeping in a chair
next to her bed a little unnerving and the bed in the infirmary weren't
half bad. Now that he knew Mihawk would be alright he was pretty sure
that he would get a restful sleep anyway. Sleeping in a bed instead of a
chair, his own or not, sounded surprisingly tempting.
The dark
frown was still on her face, so the captain shrugged grinned carelessly.
It seemed that that did not agree with her either. Shanks did not quite
understand the problem. Unlike her he knew and trusted all the members
of his crew, combined with the fact that he had slept around them
countless of times, after a night of drinking, he wasn't really bothered
by the idea of them around him when he slept. The smell in the
infirmary might be a little off putting but he was sure he could deal.
He looked to Mihawk again.
"Well the bed is big enough, if you would prefer us to share that would be no problem."
Immediately
after he had finished the sentence Shanks froze, realizing what he had
just said, he only snapped out of it when Mihawk broke the silence.
"Okay."
Then he froze again, this time in shock.
–
Mihawk
had heard what Shanks had said, but for a moment she could not believe
it and judging by the look on his face neither could he. Her agreement
to the offer had shocked him more then his own words however.
Frankly
she had no idea why she agreed, but the doctors words had been racing
through her mind, reminding her of the fact that compared to the state
he had already seen her in she was practically in top form.
Shanks
eyes are still wide but at least he seemed to havee gathered his
bearings somewhat. After another moment he managed to shake of the last
remnants of his shock, he blinked a couple of times and then his face
was carefully blank as he looked at her carefully while nodding after a
while.
"Alright. I will see you later then."
Mihawk had no
idea what Shanks had been searching for when he had looked at her, but
whatever it had been he seemed to have found it, because a small smile
flickered across his face before he left to take care of his buisness.
She
sunk back into the pillow with a sight and wondered if she was going to
regret her decision, but her train of thought was always interrupted by
the words the doctor had told her.
For whatever reason Shanks had
been worried for her. Terribly worried if the doctor was to be
believed, so worried that he had rarely ever left her side.
Mihawk
didn't know why, but that knowledge calmed her. Maybe it was because
she knew that had he wanted to harm her he would have already done it,
but part of her knew that that was far far off.
–
When
Shanks returned in the evening he hesitated after he had entered the
room, then his gaze sought out hers. Mihawk knew that this was the last
chance she had to back out.
Shanks would not hold it against her
if she said that she would prefer him to sleep elsewhere he would
probably understand only to well, that she was uncomfortable with not
only sleeping in the same room as him, but also in the same bed.
Yet
she wouldn't she had agreed to after all, when she could have easily
brushed it aside. She had already made her decision so she scooted over
and looked him dead into the eye.
She caught a flicker of surprise before he smiled slightly and walked over to the bed.
–
Let
it be known that this was not the first time Shanks had slept in the
same bed as a woman. Granted this was the first time he slept in his bed
with a woman and this might also be the first time he slept in the same
bed as a woman without actually sleeping with her before, but that did
not change the fact that he could not sleep. He simply wasn't tired at
all.
His companion, he noted with an amused glance towards Mihawk
did not seem to share his troubles. It might be because she was still
recovering and because he had slept in late this morning but Shanks
envied her a little.
In the end he ended up listing the things he
would have to catch up upon now that he no longer had to stand watch
over Mihawks unconscious form. His though process came to a stop
however, when he felt a warm body snuggled against his side and a head
came to rest on his shoulder.
For a moment Shanks stopped
breathing, completely blindsided by this development. Then amusement
replaced his surprise. Of all thing he had not taken Mihawk for someone
who would cuddle in her sleep.
It seemed to very out of character
for a woman who returned friendly backslapping with a frown o a glare
depending on her mood. But given that he had just been proven otherwise
there was no denying it.
It was unexpected, but not in a bad way. Another unexpected thing was the fact that he was quite comfortable.
His
thought brought him back to a conversation he had some years ago with a
young bartender in a small village in east blue. It was the
conversation in which he might have broken Makinos heart.
She had
remarked that Shanks could not give her what she wanted and he had
agreed. Not because he did not like her, but because above all Shanks
had always wanted to be free and a commitment like that was not
something he had been willing to make.
He had told her that his first love would always be the sea.
She had smiled at him then. A little sad and wistful, maybe even tingled with hurt.
Makino
had said that a woman who could capture his heart, must be a woman as
untamed and free as the sea and Shanks remembered that the first thing
that had come to his mind had been a picture of his rival. A woman with
an easy grace and a self confident smirk on her face as she faced him.
Back
then Shanks had assumed that the reason he had thought of Mihawk had
been that not only had she been his first crush but pretty much the one
woman he knew who could be compared to the sea in any way.
The
crush had been one he had gotten over years before that tough. And a
crush was one thing, what Makino had been talking about had been
something else. Shanks was pretty sure that what he felt for Mihawk now
was as close as he could get to what Makino had refereed to as having
his heart captured and it was very different from a crush. For one he
was quite sure that even back when he had that crush on her he would not
have been to comfortable when sharing a bed with her.
As soon as
he had entered puberty Rayleigh had given him one talk that he would
never forget and not because it had been awkward. That had been a
different talk. This talk had been shocking in it's honesty and meant
more as a warning then anything else. It was a fact that many rookie
pirates where caught by bounty hunters simply because they choose to
share the bed with the wrong woman or man.
It was a very easy way for hunters to pick up bounties, one especially popular with a number of female bounty hunters.
Physical
intimacy outside of the crew was dangerous and even then there was a
reason that the higher ranking members of the crew often had their own
cabins.
Sleeping in a bar was one thing, not only because it was
rarely a deep sleep, sleeping in the same bed with another person and
the physical closeness it entitled, a completely different one. The fact
that he was comfortable with sharing his bed with Mihawk did not
surprise him as much as it should.
She had been his friend for
years, but there was a difference between friend and nakama. He would
trust her with his life even if not with those of his crew. Mihawk was
more of a personal friend then an ally after all and over the years
without his consent she had become more. Her near death had been a
rather brutal wake up call.
So he hadn't been all that surprised
when he found himself comfortable enough to share his bed with Mihawk,
it did surprise him though that she apparently returned the sentiment.
It made Shanks feel pleased, because despite the fact that he knew how
his feelings towards her were he wasn't all that sure what she though
about him.
This kind of trust though – it went a long way and he knew that he at least meant something to her.
With
a tired sigh Shanks brushed those thought aside. It wouldn't help him
at all if he started to over think matters that had never been his
style.
Resting his cheek against Mihawks hair he decided that it
was time to go back to sleep. He would figure out what to do sooner or
later.
That night despite his reeling thought he slept better then he had in years.
–
When
Mihawk woke up in the moring she was shocked that she had actually
fallen asleep, tugged closely against Shanks and also by the fact that
she felt unbelievable calm and safe.
That alone was enough to set
her on the edge immediately. Safe and calm was not something a woman who
was both a lone pirate and a wanted criminal that had shaky deal with
the world government should ever feel.
She held no loyalty to
anyone and no one held any loyalty to her, there was no place for her to
feel safe. Swiftly she got out of the bed and hefted Yoru, but her
action had woken up Shanks as well.
"Mihawk?"
He sounded still half asleep as he sat up in the bed his hair sticking up in every direction.
"I'll be leaving."
And
she would, this was far to dangerous and she had no idea what she had
been thinking when she had agreed to stay until she had recovered. The
only way she could explain it was that the long time she had spent
unconscious had addled her brain.
Why hadn't she insisted on doing what she had always done before?
She
could simply have dropped off the radar. The only person who was alive
and had a vivre card of her was in front of her and he had other
obligations as well.
"You won't."
And he sounded so certain
that it sent a thrill of panic through her. If Shanks would try to stop
her from leaving there was pretty much nothings he could do to stop him
in her current condition, but she did not want to believe that he would
do something like that.
Which left only one other option. One that did not sit well with her at all.
"I don't need your protection."
She
bit out those words and by the defiance that flashed across his face it
seemed like her guess had been right. Mihawk didn't know whether she
should be happy about that or not, because it meant that he though she
as incapable of taking care of herself and thus saw at as his obligation
to look after her after he had first found her.
It hurt more then
it should. She had heard lots of comments about woman not being able to
take care of themselves and that she should join a crew and sail under a
captain to last her a lifetime.
Shanks had been one of the few who had
never even eluded to it and it was likely partly because of that that he
had stayed someone she saw semi regularly despite the fact that he was
no longer a rival.
His voice brought her attention back to the matters at hand.
"But I want to protect you."
His
voice was honest and whens he looked into his eyes she could not see
any shred of an deluded sense of duty on which he based his decision,
but only the honesty that his words betrayed.
It was ridiculous.
"Why would you?"
His voice stayed even and his gaze never wavered from hers, even as he sat up from his half lying position.
"Because your Mihawk. Your important to me and I don't want to loose you."
His
words struck a cord in her that she had though she had left behind long
ago. The cords that had probably driven her to accept when he told her
to stay on his ship until she recovered.
"Your being ridiculous."
Something
in his face tighten and his jaw gained a stubborn set that hadn't been
there before. He no longer looked half asleep and instead ready to move
at any give notice.
"So are you."
She watched him carefully,
feeling like she had been pushed into a corner and the fact that her
swordsarm was starting to shake from bearing the strain of the sword
wasn't helping her regain her compose. Was he going to stop her?
She knew that panic was starting to cloud her mind and she swallowed hart trying to keep calm.
"Dracule."
Shanks
voice, unusually soft, especially compared to the determined one he had
been using only moments before, cut through her minds panic and she
watched unmoving as he got up from the bed where he had been sitting and
moved towards her carefully.
Just as careful he pushed down her
sword so that the tip was resting on the ground and removed most of the
strain from her arms before pulling her into a one armed slightly
awkward embrace.
He continued to talk and she felt the vibration of his voice against her cheek.
"I know that you are capable of protecting yourself. I know that you are strong."
Mihawk
heard him swallow and felt the expansion of his chest as he took a deep
breath and against her will she closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
The familiar smell of someone she had known for years calmed her more
then her breathing exercises before had done and her mind flashed back
to what she had been contemplating shortly before. That Shanks did not
see her as helpless. She could only hope that it was more then just
words.
–
Shanks wasn't quite sure what exactly drove him to hug her, but it felt right.
He
hadn't expected to be in this situation to begin with, but he supposed
that he should have. There was no way it would be this easy to keep an
eye on Mihawk while she was hurt. He had never seen her hurt before
unless he had seen her receive the injuries so he assumed that she had a
place to lay low when she needed to.
She did not like being in a
position where she had no control, and she liked situations where she
did not have the possibility of regaining said control even less. And
despite the fact that Shanks would never force Mihawk to do anything,
they was aware of the fact that he could and that alone was enough to
make this more of the latter.
He could not simply let her go either, especially not when she was barely able to lift her sword, a safe place to hide or not.
"You
are a swordsman and you don't need me to tell you that you are a damn
good one. You have proven it time and again. Right know you are hurt,
that doesn't make you weak."
Shanks paused for a moment and wondered how to best explain why he was insisting on her staying here, without offending her.
He
stopped himself before he said to much and waited for her reaction.
Mihawk didn't say anything, but she didn't try to escape his embrace
either, they stayed for that for quite a while before she finally broke
the silence.
"Shanks... we are friends, aren't we?"
Her
question, asked with obvious hesitation threw him slightly and brought a
slight frown to his face.
They had been friends for years hadn't they?
After all if they had been only rivals their acquaintance would have
ended when he had lost his arm in the East Blue some years ago.
"Of course we are."
Even
if to him she had been more then a friend for some time now, whether he
had known it or not. So when she nodded he felt incredibly relieved,
even if he wasn't sure if she had acknowledged his statement or if her
nod had symbolized agreement, the fact remained, that she made no move
to escape from his arms.
Silence reigned again, but this time it was Shanks who broke it.
"Will you stay please?"
Mihawk
tensed immediately and for a moment he was sure that he had blown it,
but instead of shaking him of she relaxed again and gave nod. It was
barely noticeable and if her face hadn't been resting against his
shoulder he was sure that he would have missed it. Unwillingly he
smiled.
"Good."
The silence had returned again and Shanks
could not help but wonder how long they were going o stay like this.
Locked in an embrace.
As it was, the sudden silence caused him to think.
"I can sleep on the floor. I'm sure we can find a mattress somewhere."
Mihawk gave a huffed laugh.
"Don't be stupid. If you keep your hands to yourself it will be fine."
Shanks
hummed in agreement even if he did not fully agree with it. He wold
keep his hands to himself, emotions beyond friendship on his part or
not, there was no way he was going to betray her trust. There was the
fat however that Mihawk, contrary to everything he ever imagined, was a
cuddler and having her her that close to him might cause problems.
Shanks
had always excelled at following his gut feelings... It had gotten him
into a lot of trouble, but he was still alive – something that he also
credited not only to his ability but his gut instincts as well. It might
have been his crew mates who saved him, but they mostly joined him
because Shanks had thought that they would make good additions to his
crew.
All in all is gut had never led him wrong.
He decided
not to tell Mihawk that to him she was more then a simple friend even if
part of him wanted to. Shanks did not want to push her into a corner
and he was quite sure that Mihawk would not react well to his advances.
Especially not in her current condition.
Still they stayed like
they were for a long time and Shanks felt a smile find it's way onto his
face as he felt Mihawk gradually relax more and eventually loosely wrap
her arms around his waist.
It would all turn out alright in the end. He would make sure of it.
–
She
would never be quite sure what had caused her to agree to staying until
she was recovered, but she did and over the moth she spent with the red
haired pirates slowly recovering her strength she would fall into a
strange kind of routine.
A routine she wasn't quite sure what to think about.
Mostly
because she wasn't sure what to feel about the fact that the routine
included the rescuing argument on where they would sleep, one that
always ended with both of them in the same bed.
Over time Mihawk had
become used to it and the awkwardness she had felt in the beginning had
faded. Sleeping next to Shanks was pleasant. He did not snore unless he
was really drunk and she felt strangely clam when falling asleep next to
his warm body and listening to his heartbeat.
It wasn't only her that got into a routine.
The red haired pirates did as well. They got back into their old one.
During
the three weeks she had been unconscious the crew had been anchored at a
remote New World island mostly because their captain had been otherwise
occupied.
It was almost as if nothing had happened and her
presence with them was normal and if Mihawk was honest with herself she
rather enjoyed her times with them as well, they were interesting people
and there was almost always someone willing to spar with her and assist
her with her training when she needed it.
The first indication
that she was that she was getting to close, especially to Shanks, was
when the crew was in a fight with marines and Mihawk was staying under
deck as to not draw attention to herself. She had been listening to the
sounds of the fight wondering how long it was going to take.
She
had heard the name of the marine commander before and he wasn't really
much of a challenge especially not for a crew as experienced as the red
Hair pirates. So when she heart the shocked and worried voices of the
crew calling out Shanks name, she froze in shock. She was already
halfway up the stairs when she heard Shanks laughing and whens he did
she breathed a heave sigh of relief and sagged down onto the floor.
Her
heart was still beating a mile a minute when she realized what she had
nearly done. She had almost thrown away her position as one of the
Shishibukai. It made no sense. Mihawk had seen the redhaired swordsman
fight for his live and barely manage to save it countless times why
would she have such an extreme reaction to it?
Even hours later
when she was back in the captains cabin and trying to fall asleep her
mind was still reeling and she had no idea how long it would have taken
her to fall asleep if it hadn't been for Shanks deep breathing beside
her. On the next morning though she pushed those thoughts away and acted
like nothing had happened after she had managed to convince herself
that it would never happen again.
–
It was the day before
Mihawk had planned to leave that her peace of mind was shaken up once
more. She had returned from training outside of the town where they had
anchored when she overheard some of the crew members talking.
Usually
she wasn't one to listen in on other peoples private conversations, but
given that she heard her own name, she thought it prudent to gather
information.
It was a habit that had served her well in the past.
This
time however the information she gathered was simply unsettling her. It
seemed like it was the general consent among the crew that she was
Shanks girl.
Had it been just some random person she would have
ignored it, there had been countless rumors like that about her. It was
on of the consequences of being a woman in a male dominated profession
and she knew that it wasn't true so she ignored it. But it wasn't some
random person in a bar talking this time. This time it was a member if
the mans own crew.
As she left them behind and made her way back
to the ship her mind was spinning in circles. Objectively she could
understand where the idea came from, they did share his cabin after all
and that was not something that was casually done. But they had seen
them interact and Mihawk was sure that they hadn't acted that much
different from before she had been injured. The only difference she
could think of was, that she had not left the day or the day after she
had arrived but since they all knew the reason for her extended stay
with them the idea sounded ludicrous.
She hoped those rumors would
not cause trouble in the long run and decided to inform Shanks about
them later, he might want to clear that up with his crew and thus get
rid of the unsettling feeling she had when thinking about it.
But
since the evening whens he could speak with Shanks in private without
unnecessarily giving the rumors more credit she decided to push it aside
for the moment.
When she remembered it in the evening they were already about to go to sleep, she brought it up anyway.
"Shanks?"
The man opened one of his eyes do look at her.
"Mhm?"
She swallowed wondering why she was suddenly feeling so nervous.
"I heard some rumors today."
He blinked at her from his one open eye.
"Your crew they were talking."
Now he raised his head from the pillow and looked at her curiously, it did not calm her at all.
"They kept saying that I was your girl."
Shanks blinked twice and Mihawk was surprised at how calm her own voice had sounded.
"Ah do they now..."
Shanks trailed of and rubbed his chin.
"Doesn't it bother you?"
Shanks eyes snapped back to her again, his expression serious.
Mihawk
noticed the momentary tightening of his shoulders before they relaxed
again and now there was a look of determination in his eyes that had not
been their before.
She had no idea what to expect when he leaned
forward and by the time she realized what he had planned his lips were
already softly pressing against hers. Her mind stuttered to a halt and
before she could react, be it by pushing him away of returning the kiss
he had already pulled away again.
She opened her mouth but no words left her lips.
Shanks on the other hand smiled and it is a wistful smile.
"It doesn't bother me what they are saying."
For
a moment Mihawk was almost glad that he had returned to the original
question, but when he continued she was at a loss again, with no idea
what to do.
"Because I would like you to be just that."
The
smile was still on his face and it was an honest smile and the confusion
must have been visible on hers because Shanks decided to elaborate.
"My girl."
–
Shanks
could see shock and disbelieve cross her face, but she did not get up
from where they were still lying, she did not walk away and this was the
only chance he might have. So he took the chance despite the fact that
should this go wrong she might never forgive him and the closeness that
had been between them so far would vanish.
Kissing her had been a
big risk and he knew that she could still leave. She was healed if this
went down the drains he could get up and he would have no idea when he
would see her again. If that happened the best thing he could hope for
was that she would ignore what happened right now and act like she had
before the duel, a distant friend. Still he hoped.
"I'm a swordsman."
Her voice his is carefully blank and Shanks knew that this would make them or break them.
"You are."
It was something no one could deny, least of all him.
"I'm the worlds strongest swordsman and I will hold that title until I loose."
And
that to was the truth, but there was one distinction he needed her to
make. Because her loosing her title was not the same thing as death, not
always. But knowing Mihawk as he did Shanks was sure that in her eyes
it was nearly the same thing.
For her loosing her title meant dying she wouldn't even try to live.
"I know and I won't ask you to give up all of that. But I want you to give it a chance. Will you?"
She looked at him then and the blankness had left her gaze, instead there was confusion.
"Give what a chance?"
And Shanks could not help the grin that tugged on his lips.
"Us."
He knew that she had to continue before she could brush him off.
"To me you are more then just a friend and frankly it has been like that for a long time. I just hadn't accepted it."
Shanks swallowed.
"But I have realized that one of us could die every day and I know that I would regret it if I hadn't tried."
And
next part was the hardest, but he needs to say it so he swallowed again
and pushed aside his uncertainty. Not every swordsman that looses his
title died. Most did and it was not necessarily because of the injuries
they received in battle, but because there was nothing left to live for
once they had lost and Mihawk was just the kind of person would would
think that as well. And Shanks would not, could not loose her because of
his own cowardice.
"I love you, I don't want to loose you. So can you promise me something?"
–
Mihawks
heart was beating fast and she could hear her blood rushing in her
ears. Shanks words has shocked her and she stared at him, searching his
eyes for any sign of insincerity, but finding none.
Never had she
though that he would feel about her that way. She had been to town with
him countless times and she knew that even after he had lost his arm he
was still very popular with women, but he said that he loved her and it
was obvious that he did not mean as a friend.
Yet she knew that he meant every word he said, Shanks was not the kind of person to lie about things like this.
"What kind of promise? I don't make promises I cannot keep."
Her
voice was barely audible and she wondered why the relief over the fact
that she did not outright refused to promise anything lit up his eyes
made her mouth go dry.
His voice on the other hand was firm and if there was a note of pleading in it Mihawk pretended not to hear it.
"I want you to promise me that should you loose your title you will not throw your life away."
Puzzled she opened her mouth.
"Should you loose and have the chance to live, don't chose death."
Shanks swallowed and his eyes searched for hers.
"Instead you will come to me and stay with me."
A smile flickered across his face.
"Go on adventure with me and above all you will not leave me."
Looking
at him, the man she first met when he was a boy many years ago whens he
started to make a name for herself as a swordsman and he was just a
cabin boy on the ship of the man who would be the pirate king, she felt
as a loss of what to do.
How could she respond to such a question.
A promise like that would be a vow and Mihawk had never sworn herself to anything but the blade.
"And until then?"
She could not look at him and her voice broke halfway through the question.
"Until then..."
His voice was soft, almost a whisper.
"Until then you are Hawkeye the worlds strongest swordsman one of the seven Shishibukai. It would still be the same but.."
He trailed off for a moment.
"But
you would always have a place to return to. And when you come to me I
will always be there to hold you tight and keep you safe If you need me
to."
Mihawk looked at him and wondered what it would be like to
have a place like that. What it would be like to know that Shanks would
always want her back. Because he man of his word as she was a woman of
hers.
It was then that she knew that she would agree. Alone the
fact that she was considering it was all the answer she really needed.
She was vulnerable and the man in front of her was the only person who
ever made her feel that way. By all accounts she should have pushed him
away long ago. Yet she didn't because she trusted him not to take
advantage of her vulnerability. She trusted him more then she ever
planned to. She trusted him so much that she believed that if she were
to give him the chance, he would not break her heart.
She had given him her trust before without though but this time it would be a conscious choice.
Shanks
eyes were soft and he made no attempt to hide his feelings as looked at
her earnestly. Idly Mihawk realized that she had seen those emotions in
her eyes before whens he had first woken up again after the poisoning,
only this time she recognized them. Affection, maybe even love and she
felt her throat close up.
All she could do was nod.
Shanks smile was wide.
"So it's a promise?"
Mihawk nodded.
"Yes. It's a promise."
It
was then that he reached out for her, buried his hand in her hair and
kissed her. It was a kiss full of feelings and Mihawk felt it down to
her toes.
And as he pulled her on top of him and ran his hand down
her side she feels like the first time she picked up a blade. It was as
if a world of endless possibilities lay in front of her and she only
had to reach out to grasp it. She looked down at Shanks smiling up at
her and she felt a smile come on her own lips as she took the chance and
kissed him.
–
When Mihawk left the next day, Shanks walked her back towards her small ship that was anchored next to the red force.
He
was smiling the whole time and when she stepped onto her board and made
to leave, he griped her wrist slightly and turned her around so they
stand opposite of each other.
"Take care of yourself."
Shanks
himself was surprised by how solemn his own voice sounded and he
watched as the swordswoman blinked slightly before giving a slight,
barely visible, but still there smile.
Then she looked directly into his eyes.
"I promise."
For
a second Shanks was stumped, but then the smile found its way back on
his face and he gave her wrist a slight tug, pulling her towards him and
pressing his lips against hers softly.
He felt her tense for a second before she too relaxed and kissed him back.
The
kiss was short but Shanks knew that his smile was impossible wide even
as he watched her small boat disappear into the horizon. He had no idea
how long he had been standing at the shore watching the sea, when he
heard someone chuckle next to him.
Shanks only had to turn a little to make out Yasopps figure standing shortly behind him.
"Finally huh."
There
was a teasing grin on the other mans face and Shanks blinked once
before blushing slightly, the smile never leaving his face.
"Yeah."
–
Over
the next months Mihawk continued to return to visit him. She could not
come as often as both of them would have liked since it would draw
unwanted attention from the marines. Mihawk was a Shishibukai, should
she be seen with them to often people could come to the conclusion that
she was allied with them.
While Shanks was quite sure that Mihawk
would not fight them he also knew that an alliance was out of question.
It would not only raise the eyebrows of the marines, but also those of
the other Yonko and she would not be allowed to travel through their
territory that easily.
Maybe one day she could stay, but he was
quite sure that that day was still far in the future. Still he was
happy, he could hold her close and love her, while she had a place to
return to. A place where should would always be welcome.
It was at
one of those short visits that Mihawk made that Shanks was lying awake
in his bed next to her and watched as she slept peacefully when
something dark between her shoulder blades, partially hidden by her
hair, drew his attention. It was a tattoo and he could not remember
Mihawk having one. Curiously he brushed the hair aside, moving very
slowly and carefully so that he would not wake her.
As soon as he could see the tattoo clearly he froze.
He knew that mark. He was very familiar with it.
It was his.
It was the pirate flag he was sailing under.
A skull with three scars over its left eye, over two crossed swords.
And
Mihawk had it as a tattoo. Suddenly his throat felt very tight. He
reached out and traced the outline. It really was there, it wasn't
simply his imagination.
His movement however woke up Mihawk. Shanks watched as she blinked sleepily, before she registered what woke her up.
"Shanks? What are you doing up?"
He
opened his mouth to answer her, but no words would come. The
swordswoman frowned confused by his behavior. She understood however,
when he reached out to trace the tattoo again.
Then she did something that Shanks had never seen her do before in all the years they had known each other, she blushed.
She blushed furiously and turned away from him an action that put the tattoo even more in his line of sight.
He traced the tattoo again an d felt a smile tugging st his lips.
"The promise."
Shanks gaze snapped up to meet Mihawks eyes.
"It's to represent our promise."
At
her words he felt oddly content. It was a strange feeling, one he
wasn't used to. He knew the yearning for adventure, the thirst for more
and the happiness of being with his nakama, but contentment was
something he was not overly familiar with.
A tattoo was the
closest thing a pirate came to a live long commitment since marriages
between outlaws weren't acknowledged by the world government.
Looking
down at Mihawk who had closed her eyes again, trying to go back to
sleep some traces of the blush still left on her face and he felt a wave
of affection. This was the place he wanted to be and right now, he
would be perfectly fine with staying here with her forever.
Shanks
leaned forward and kissed the tattoo resting between her shoulder
blades again. It was proof that what they had was real and as he gazed
down at the mark under which he sailed another idea fluttered through
his mind. With a wicked smile on his lips he kissed the tattoo again,
before trailing his lips up towards the back of her neck. She shivered
as he nipped a particular sensitive spot on her neck and Shanks grin
widened. He would have to get a tattoo as well, it was only fair after
all and he already knew what it was going to be. He continued his
teasing for a moment longer and when Mihawk tilted her head to the side
to give him better access, he bit her lightly before he pulled away and
turned on his back as if going back to sleep.
The growl and elbow jab he gets in response are worth it though.
Laughing
Shanks sat up and grabbed both of her wrists, pinning them over her
head and leaned over her before grinning down at her, there faces only
inches apart.
"I thought you wanted to sleep Dracule."
She glowered at him and Shanks grinned at her, pressing his nose against hers.
"You are an idiot."
She
sounded menacing, but she was smiling as Shanks leaned down to kiss her
but she stopped him just before he could press his lips to hers.
"I love you you know."
She
looked at him a soft smile on her lips and a small blush dusting her
cheeks, it was a sight that tugged on his heart and made him fall in
love with her all over again.
"I love you too."
He knew that the smile on his was impossible wide as he leaned down and captured her lips with his.
–
One
day in the future Mihawk would return from a short trip into the east
blue not only with the bounty poster of a young boy whose story she had
heard countless times but also with the memory of a boy with a great
ambition.
One day in the future she would find herself lying in a
pool of her own blood, her arms incapable of lifting her sword, her body
incapable of getting up again and with a blade at her throat.
She
would look up into the eyes of the boy who had first challenged her in
east blue and later become her student. Looking down on her beaten form
he would tell her that he won and she would smile and agree. It was then
that she could have chosen to tell him that he had not yet won, that
she was still breathing, and she knew that the boy would take her life.
He would respect her choice, but she wouldn't. Instead she would smile
and agree.
And after that, when she was healed, she would return to Shanks side again, this time with no plan to leave.
It would a vow unbroken, a promise kept.
--
So here it is. I also posted this One Shot on fanfiction.net si if its familar that would explain why.
