Satan's Madness

Jena smiled softly at her and gently pulled calico close and hugged her. she hadn't failed to notice the pain and was trying to help drive it away. "you don't have to thank me" she said softly.

Calico's smile faltered a little, still she hurt on the inside. After all, even though he crushed her heart and she still loved him. It was a difficult relationship.

Jena still hugged calico gently. "from now on you can confide in me" he said softly. "i'll die before i tell anyone" she added. she knew it must be hard for her. jena didn't let calico's past change how she looked at her. she knew there was a wall right now around calico. but she intended to take it down one brick at a time.

Calico nodded, her eyes relaxing just a bit. She needed to let someone in. It was against her nature to let anyone into her personal life, and it needed to be fixed.

Jena kept her arms around calico. she looked at calico. "let's find somewhere more private so we can talk. i don't like being in the open like this with navy running around" she said kindly to her.

Calico nodded, following Jena.

Jena kept her arm around calico's waist gently and led her into the next town. she got them a room at an inn and led her inside. james could have followed if he wished. once in the room she sat down on the edge of the bed with calico. "do you want to talk now or would you rather wait for later?" she asked softly. she was still bleeding a bit from all the wounds she had, including the self inflicted ones on her arms, but she was more concerned with calico.

Calico looked at Jena's arms, "I'd rather you do something about those first."

Jena smiled softly at her. "thanks" she said. that was where the worst of it was. a few bullets had grazed her sides, and a few were dead on in her body, but her arms looked the worst.

Calico tore strips of fabric from the sleeves of her shirt for make-shift bandages for his arms. She worked in silence, unsure of what to say.

Jena smiled softly at her. when she was done she hugged calico lightly. "thank you again" she said not letting go. she knew calico was unsure of herself now. this was jena's way of showing she didn't need to feel unsure.

Calico smiled weakly and sat back down, "Where do you want me to start?" she asked. There was a lot to her story, and she wasn't sure how much Jena wanted to hear.

Jena smiled softly at her. 'from the very beginning if you don't mind" she said sitting cross legged so she could watch calico better. she wanted to know everything about her.

Calico nodded, looking down as if she couldn't hardly bear to let anyone know about her past, "My father was a pirate. Calico Jack Rackham, actually. He landed in Port Muerte, looking for a little fun, and found my mother. She was recently widowed and rather lonely, so it wasn't that hard for him to practically squeeze the life out of her. When she told him she was pregnant, he got back on his ship and left, never even saying goodbye."

Jena watched her in silence. she gently ran her fingers through calico's hair to help relax her as she spoke. "i see..." she said not sure of what else she could say. she stayed close to calico to let her know she didn't need to be afraid to speak.

"My mom hoped he would come back." Calico smiled for a brief second, "It drove her insane. She couldn't keep up with both of us without a husband, so when I was five years old, she left me standing on the pier at Port Muerte as she sailed off. Like always, she never looked back." Calico's eyes were watery, painting the perfect image of a five-year-old Calico standing on a pier as sailors kept her from jumping in the water after her mother's ship, screaming and crying as her mother stared straight at the horizon, not caring about her daughter for even the briefest of moments.

Jena watched ehr with a soft lookin her eyes. she picked up a tissue and gently dabbed at calico's watery eyes. "well i can promise you i'll never leave you alone" she said kindly. she couldn't imagine how hard that must have been for her.

"And you heard about Samuel. I met him when I was eight. A group of street thugs were trying to do what big, drunk men do, and he saved me. I would have died if he hadn't been there." Calico smiled, sort of happy if only for a second, "Then he left me, too. Never looked back. It seems to be a reoccurring theme in my life."

Jena pulled calico close to her and hugged her. jena was a bit bigger then calico so it worked. "i promise i'll never leave you" she said softly. she meant it too. she only wished she had her real body back so it would be easier on calico.

"You had asked me earlier about the scars on my arms." Calico said, turning to face Jena, "Those got there on the slave ship: branding with iron."

jena gently rubbed her arms, still holding her close. "i wish i could have done something back then... but i was sorta locked in a dungeon getting the life whipped out of me" she said quietly. that explained all the scars she had crisscrossing her back. "i slipped up once and the royal navy got a hold of me. i was still a teen or a kid i can't recall which, but i apparantly looked at a navy guy wrong and they threw me in the dungeon to be whipped until life left me" she said.

Calico nodded, "That's essentially what happened with Sam, but he thought he was 'sparing' me by selling me to the slave traders."

Jena shook her head. "he can't hurt you anymore" she said softly. she still had her arms gently around calico. to many this would look like an older sister consoling a younger one.

James followed the two to the town and stood in the bedroom doorway. They'd tell him to go if they wanted him gone.

Calico nodded, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand sleepily. She looked out the window, noting that the sun was setting over the horizon, she had a wounded stomach, and it had been a few weeks since she slept. Thinking on all that seemed to make her unbearably tired.