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"ow" I said wincing and squeezing my eyes shut

"hold still" said Buster

"I am" I grumbled

"well hold still more" he said with a smiled

he patched my head and cleaned off the blood then he saw to my arm that also got a little cut along the gravel he pulled my sleeve up

"you know?" I said wincing again "I could do this all myself"

"I know" he said "but I have nothing better to do" he looked me over "Seems he gashed your collar bone too"

he ran his finger over the wound I cringed as I felt him stick something on

"ow" I growled pulling away

"baby" he said as I pulled out of his grip

"it's not my fault if your anything but gentle" I snapped

a long silence passed between us as he rubbed his shoulder I watched with a smile

"aww" I said pouting "does it still hurt?" he looked at me with a frown

"yes" he said "why would you do that"

"because I'm a nightmare dressed as a day dream?"

he smiled letting some more time pass between us

"I've been thinking--"

"oh that can't be good" I said smiling he rolled his eyes

"you did not want to fight number 4 with the axe" he said looking at me curiously "why?"

I stood up and crossed my arms mumbling unhappily

"I just wanted to know why" he said as I sighed

"I don't like axes" I told him he leaned forwards slightly

"why?"

"Well because---"

he stood up and came forwards grabbing a corner of my shirt he lifted it showing the long thick white scar along my side

"hey" I growled grabbing his arm but he didn't let go

"is it because of that?" he asked I sighed

"yes" I said irritated yanking my shirt out of his grip I smoothed it down

"care to tell me how it happened?" I shook my head he shrugged "okay but you'll have too soon"

"don't hold your breath" I told him

he sighed as he pulled me closer and touched his nose to mine and he stared into my eyes I completely froze then he let my hand go and moved away I came back in to the world of the living I walked over to the window Ceil and sat down on it and stared out at the sea and sighed I heard Buster walk over to me and his shadow loomed over me I turned my head to face him his look was serious

"you don't love me do you?"

"huh?" I said alarmed

I was wondering what would happen when I answered I let a long silence passed between us and then I nodded

"these thing tend to happen" I said he smiled

"that was the main reason why I wanted to keep you" he said as he leaned over and kissed my forehead I smiled

"well that didn't work out to plan" I said he shook his head

"no" he said "I tried to change your mind but" he shrugged "it was fun while it lasted"

"our definitions of fun are very different" I said

he winked at me and turned away

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I woke in the morning to Buster shaking me again I sat up yawning

"what?" I said rubbing my eyes he bit his lip then with a deep breath he began to speak

"I have decided to release all 46 of you from slavery" he said slowly and unsurly

"well" I said "it hasn't been much slave labour" he smiled

"your ship is at the docks ready to sail when you are" I bolted upright like I just sat on a pin cusion

"are you serious?" I said he smiled and nodded

"I'm serious on my word you are all free to go"

I jumped up in happiness and hugged him around the neck he hugged me back and I could feel he did not want me to go

"thank you, thank you, thank you" I said into his shoulder

I heard him laugh as he put me down I smiled at him then left a lingering kiss on his cheek he took in a sharp breath he looked shocked

"well" he said "best you be ... ah ... going?" his cheeks flashed red

he was almost acting like a school boy he scratched the back of his neck and turned away slightly then turned back to me almost in the same second and kissed me hard greedily stealing the oxygen from my lungs I kissed back with almost the same passion he pulled back staring at me fully his eyes seemed clouded as he looked me over

"I really do love you" he said his voice cracking

"buster I--"

"no" he said cutting me off "don't make this any harder"

"no" I said grabbing his face his eyes closed as soon as I did "listen to me when I say this if life was different if I didn't want a different life than what I had all those years ago then you would have been my first choice but things are this way and we just have to live with it"

I leaned forwards and kissed him his body was shaking as I pulled away my breath fanned across his lips as I watched the first of many tears roll down his face his eyes were still closed as he started to spill his heart to me and I wondered if he even knew he was crying

"but I love you" he said "I love you the women who practicly bet me into submission teased the hell out of me and made me feel so inferior I was convinced that the universe revolved around you"

I felt tears come to my eyes I couldn't do this I could break his heart he won't ever be the same his body shook violently and then he broke out into loud sobs and that was when I let his face go my arms wounding around his waist as I hugged him

"I know" I told him "and I'm so sorry I can't return your feelings"

he hugged me back as I rested my head against his chest as his arms wounded around my waist he started to babble on about every thing about his parents and friends and how they left him just like I was leaving him he let out loud heart aching sobs and all I could do was stand there and listen hearing about how his mother died when he was three and his father was poisoned where he was eighteen and how all his friends died via pirate attack and I hugged him tightly assuring him that I was still there. until I thought it was time to go to bed and I pulled away he looked at me his silver eyes misted over with a sort of defeated look as I grabbed his hand leading him back to the bed where I slid onto it and he followed after I pulled the cover back sliding under he followed lying down facing me we just looked at each other

"go to sleep" I told him he blinked a few times and sighed closing his eyes one by one keeping his eyes on me for as long as he could his body relaxed

"I suppose as soon as I fall asleep you'll up and leave won't you?" I smiled though he probably couldn't see it I moved closer wrapping my arms around his waist

"does it feel like i'm the sort of person who does that especially to the man who just cried his heart out and confessed his love to a person he barely even knows"

"no" he mumbled as I shifted even closer feeling warm thick arms wrap around my waist I continued to smile a few minutes passed and I thought he would have fallen sleep instead he burrowed closer to me

"you are a very very different women from all those gold diggers panther" he said sleepily

"panther?" I questioned

"yes," he said yawning, "my black panther seen in plain day light as the most stunning daydream any man could ever hope to have then into the shadows the most frightening thing any human could ever see your dangerouse and fiesty, yet caring and loyal," his body came impossibly closer to mine his eyes still closed as he talked with the most scincerity of any man I have ever met, "and I wanted to be the one to make love to you on our honey moon and hold you close to me every night I wanted to be the one to protect you and keep you safe I wanted to be the one to marry you," he took a deep breath then his arms fell limp around my back as he fell asleep what was left of his energy spent

"i'm so sorry" I whispered against his neck tears falling down my face as I moved closer to him snuggling into him

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