Disclaimer: I do not profit from this story and all creative rights to the characters belong to their original creator(s); pictures and songs included. Sorin Elva belongs to author PorcelainBlack/PlayfulxPurple. She gave me permission to borrow her on account of us being close friends. Ask her and she'll tell you the same. The plot is mine - what I added.
This work is strictly before the Summit War arc in the series. It follows the manga 12 years before then, when the trio are kids. The fic is again strictly original character x Ace; no poly ASL. Please pay attention to the warning tags. This work has adult themes (the characters may start young, but they will age) and spoilers to the series. Please enjoy.
Sorin Elva made a grave mistake; she tried to steal from pirates. She was caught, of course, but even for a 9 year old, the consequences were just as dire. They were going to kill her. She'd die alone and no one would care.
Her small body hurt very bad. Elva cried out in pain every time the Lieutenant would kick her. The ribs in her chest felt cracked; her breathing was becoming shallow and her eyelids were heavy with sleep. However, her thoughts were on the books laid out on the ground an arm's length away from her.
They were important to her. The books would guarantee her survival in the world, but none of that mattered now. Porchemy was going to kill her, crush her bones into dust before she ever got the chance to become a doctor. Still, Elva tried to reach for them, straining to wrap her fingers around the spine of the volume 1 encyclopedia.
Porchemy saw what she was trying to do and kicked the book further from her reach. He loved the sound she made; so sad and very frightened. The young girl was scared of him. She should be, he thought to himself. Elva may have been important to his captain, but that gave her no reason to run around and do as she liked. He kicked her again, just because he wanted to.
"Boss, no offense, but the Captain will shoot us if we kill her." He made no attempt to grab the man, but he wanted to. Porchemy was making a grave mistake by hurting the little medic. She was important to them, but not only because of her choice in career; Elva was unique.
The large man turned and glared at the Carrier. It was his fault they were in this situation. He lost the money his captain was supposed to pay off to the nobles, then allowed the girl to steal from them. If anyone should be shot, it should be him. Porchemy honestly thought about offering his head to their captain, but they needed him. He could recognize the one who stole from them.
His attention went back to the little girl. She was still on the ground, curled up in pain. It made him sick. "Get the hell up, brat. You're going to return the Captain's tribute back to him once we get back our money. It will be up to him what to do with you."
Elva glared at him; her blue eyes were dark like the sea during a storm. "T–They're only books. He wouldn't want them, so piss off."
Porchemy disregarded her and reached down to pick her up. Her knees collapsed beneath her, but he didn't let her fall over. His fingers tightened around the hood of her torn shirt, lifting her off her feet. Such a little thing. Porchemy laughed as he dangled her above the ground. She didn't even put up a struggle. "What's wrong, brat? Not wanting to fight me? You sounded so ready to throw down a minute ago."
Elva ignored his questions; he knew the answers. Her eyes burned with tears, but she tried not to let Porchemy see them. He'd only laugh and hit her again, as if her pain was amusing to him. Pathetic. I'm so weak. She dropped her head and stared at the books on the ground. All she wanted was to read the next one; her captain was missing the 2nd volume, but it didn't matter to Elva. Someday she'd have them all, then again, it was only wishful thinking. She'd never be allowed to leave their crew.
Porchemy shook her little body like a doll, making her head spin. He laughed as her face screwed up in agony. But then, a high pitched scream caught his attention; it sounded like a cry for help. Looking at Elva, he noticed that she heard it too. Her ears twitched, searching for the source of the sound.
"Hey, I heard voices from here; children's voices." A stocky pirate with a wood staff came scurrying out from the undergrowth, shoving his finger in the direction of the noise. His superior glared at him and hissed at him to shut up. Porchemy shook Elva again, ordering her to verify what she heard.
"It was someone my age; younger maybe." Elva listened again. She heard a plethora of voices; each of them male. They were close, but even though they were whispering, she could hear them clear as a bell. "Over there; through the foliage." She pointed a finger in the right direction and ordered them to follow the path.
The spiteful lieutenant tossed her like a rag doll at the member with the hooded T shirt, who caught her with a grunt. He swung Elva over his shoulder and followed the crew through the bushy forest. She watched sadly as her books were left on the ground; lost to her forever.
Porchemy lead the crew through the forest; a path had opened up. The canopy blocked out most of the sun, but streaks of light that poured through the gaps helped to brighten the area. It smelled of dusty soil and pine resin; a scent that Elva found to be relaxing. She nearly forgot about the others until Porchemy began to speak.
"Those children Ace and Sabo you're telling me about are famous around here. You're sure it's Ace that took your money, right?" Elva twitched her ears; she'd heard of them before. They stole from traders and shady pirates around the Terminal. She had never met them or seen them before personally, but they'd made a name for themselves amongst the people of the junkyard. Elva listened as Porchemy and the Carrier talked about them; nothing was mentioned that she didn't already know.
Porchemy stopped at the base of a huge tree and glanced around. He found nothing of interest. "Put down the brat."
The hooded pirate plucked Elva from his shoulder and placed her bare feet on the dry earth. She was ordered to listen and faced the quiet forest, placing her hands on either side of her ears. She could hear nothing at first, then the faint sound of tense undertones filled the air. They were indeed the same young males as before, talking about Porchemy. She heard them mention her and when she looked in their direction, the bushes where they hid rustled loudly. A gentle smile spread across her face, but just as quickly it fell. Elva felt bad for them; they reminded her of the others in the Terminal. All they wanted to do was survive. What right did she have to decide their fate?
"I don't hear anything." Elva glanced at Porchemy and tilted her head. "Sorry, but no one is around. All I hear are 3 chatty squirrels in the underbrush."
The huge pirate gritted his teeth. Little brat! He grabbed her by the arm and yanked down her hood, exposing her pointed ears. Porchemy lifted his sword and put the cold blade to one. "Don't mock me, brat. If you don't tell me where they are, I'll cut an inch for every second you waste." His blade pressed deeper against the uncovered flesh to stress his point.
Elva opened her mouth, but no words came out. She couldn't possibly rat them out; the Captain would never allow them to live. Her bright eyes flickered toward the bush and she pointed further into the forest – she couldn't bring herself to do it. "I hear voices coming from that way. They're faint, but the same." She hoped the vicious lieutenant would believe her. His grip on her hood had become loose; he did.
Suddenly, however a boy came running out of the underbrush. Elva yelped as Porchemy tossed her aside and grabbed him, lifting the dark haired boy off his feet. He struggled to be released, but the pirate tightened his grip around his slender body and held him close. "Let go of me! Damn you … help me Ace!" Elva was too scared to move; the pirate would know that she had lied.
"Did you just say Ace?" Porchemy narrowed his eyes, giving Elva a glare before returning his attention to the boy. "Do you know him?"
The boy smiled; a goofy expression that just didn't fit the grave tone of the situation he was in. "He's my friend … oh, but he did try to kill me just now."
"I'm going to ask you one thing. Today, he took our money and ran away. Do you happen to know where he is?" The ingenuous boy puckered his lips and began to whistle nervously, telling Porchemy that he didn't know; it was obvious that he was lying. This made the Lieutenant snicker. "You leave me no choice then … I'll make you tell us, don't worry." He ordered the same pirate to grab the girl and began walking back towards the junkyard, holding the noisy boy at arm's length to avoid his unruly limbs.
Elva pushed up on her forearms and stared out sorrowfully at the fading plant life – the boys from the underbrush had come into the clearing, watching them go. Heart beating fast, she felt drained. She silently begged them to help her and cried when they did not.
No use … they can't hear you. Sorin Elva was an idiot to have hoped for better.