I know a lot of people have already done stories like this, the whole 'what if I was sucked into the One Piece Universe' stories. Personally, I don't think it would be as adventurous as some of them sound. I think it would be traumatizing.
Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or Narnia (brief mentioning here) and make no profit from this story.
Warnings: My own foul language.
Description: It could have all been just a dream, I'm still not really sure. All I know is, it was one hell of a ride…
Go ahead, tell me what you think. It will probably end up being a multi-chapter fic, either way.
So there I was, sitting in a chair in front of my TV and minding my own business, when I had the most peculiar feeling. It was gradual, a slight tingling just below my sternum. I ignored it, of course, but instead of disappearing, the feeling became stronger. It spread out to my shoulders, down my legs, wrapping my entire body in a strange, prickly sensation. Finally, I started to get a little worried about my current health and stood from the chair.
That was the last I remember of being in my own world that day.
When I fell, I fell hard. Hit a couple of what felt like wooden boxes on the way, too. A quick, sharp pain in my left forearm and I slammed into the ground, landing on my side with a loud thud.
"Ow," I complained. Damn, that hurt.
After pushing myself into a sitting position and moving my dark and unruly hair out of my eyes I looked around, confused. The fall from the chair shouldn't have been that long. Or painful. One disbelieving assessment later I quickly closed my eyes and shook my head furiously. There was no way…
I was in a room lined with planks, the walls curving just a little on the sides. And the floor was moving steadily in a shallow, rocking motion. Disorganized rows of crates lined the perimeter and stacked up as far as the ceiling, miscellaneous objects, such as strips of cloth and worn paper, spilling out of the open tops. A few round, dirty windows at the top of the walls were the only source of light.
I staggered to my feet, feeling the burning pain in my arm again. Looking down, I was far from surprised at seeing a shallow gash running down the inside of my forearm, rivulets of blood pooling at my wrist to drip to the floor. This was a problem, I decided, and I might have to do something about that. My brain seemed to think that dealing with the smaller issues first was the best way to handle my current situation without shutting down completely, so I focused on my arm.
I took off my button-down black and white shirt and wrapped it hastily around the cut, leaving my upper half in just a plain white tank top. For once I was grateful of how thick my hair was as several curls sat gently on my bare shoulders, keeping me warm in the cold room. I had to get out of here, wherever 'here' was. Spotting a door at the far end of the room I practically ran for it, ignoring the slight twinge in the hip I had not so delicately landed on. Just as I was reaching for the handle it swung inward, barely missing my nose. I back-pedaled, tripped over my own feet, and landed hard on my tailbone. "What the hell?"
"Aah! Whoever you are I'm not afraid of you! Just try something, you dirty monster, I'll hack you into pieces!"
I could hear a shrill, panicked voice, but couldn't see where it was coming from at first. Dropping my gaze I gasped and pushed myself back even further. "Holy shit!"
A short brown creature, standing on it's hind legs and sporting a tall pink hat, was waving it's arms frantically at me and talking. Talking. I began to feel a little dizzy at that point, and not just from the rocking of, what I had now guessed was, the ship. Where the hell was I anyway? Narnia?
"Go on," the creature continued as it hopped sideways, behind the doorframe, and peeked out. "I'm not afraid of you! Coward!" Small, round eyes glared at me and a blue nose twitched from side to side. There was something weirdly familiar about the display. I would have thought it was cute, if I wasn't so freaked out by the whole thing.
"What the hell are you?" I yelled. The critter shrieked and hid completely, obviously frightened. I began to feel a little sorry for it. "I mean," I tried again, "Where am I?" Off my rocker, that's where I was. I knew I shouldn't have let my roommate rope me into watching those dumb shows. Now I had drifted off and was having hallucinations of talking animals and ships filled with boxes. My arm chose that moment to give a sharp sting, as if it was trying to remind me that it was still injured, and still awake. I sat up and put my hand over the improvised bandage.
The creature, who looked more like some kind of tiny deer than anything, popped it's head back around the corner of the doorway. "Hey," it said quietly. "What's the matter with you?"
"Cut myself," I answered without thinking. I stopped and shook my head. Obviously, I needed professional help if I was talking to an imaginary deer, who stood upright and could speak as clearly as I could.
To my surprise, and worry, the little thing crept slowly out from behind the doorway and toward me, it's eyes glued to the shirt around my arm. "I'm a doctor," it offered, still in a quiet voice. "I could help you."
"Uhm, no," I answered. Humoring my imagination by even talking to this thing was enough for me, I wasn't about to let it go any further.
"Chopper," a male voice sounded from further out of sight. "Did you find that crate yet? It's in the back by the others. And who're you talking to?"
I backed up even further. Chopper? Wasn't that the name of…
Aw, crap.
"No, no, no," I said, scooting along the floor until my shoulder ran into one of the boxes and I was unable to go any further, "This is not happening. I'm dreaming. I fell asleep in my chair and I'm dreaming. I'm not here, and neither are you." I pointed at the deer. Chopper. That simply wasn't possible.
Chopper looked at me, confused, and then behind him at the approaching figure. He seemed to be at a loss of what to do in this situation. I couldn't say I blamed him, honestly. What does one do with a crazy person?
I nearly fainted when a slim blonde man appeared at the doorway. He was holding a kitchen towel in his hand and his one visible eye moved from Chopper to where I was leaning against the box, the other eye completely covered by his bangs. "Not possible," I muttered under my breath. Then, a little louder, "Sanji?"
The young man lifted his eyebrow at me. "Sorry," he said politely. "I usually remember the faces of the beautiful ladies I'm acquainted with, but I don't believe we've met." His gaze took in my wild, elbow-length hair, thin torso and long jean-clad legs.
I fought down the urge to growl at him. I'm not dense, I know what I look like. I know I'm not hideous but I most definitely lack curves. Scrawny, most people would call me, and I don't disagree. "What's your problem?" I scowled. It made me uncomfortable, the way he was looking at me, and I instantly became defensive.
Sanji moved his eye away from me when Chopper tugged on his black pant leg. "Who is she?" the little deer asked, a bit braver with the tall man beside him.
"I'm not sure," Sanji answered thoughtfully. "A stow-away perhaps? From the last island? Whoever she is, she's of course welcome to stay."
"But," Chopper looked worried, "what if she's a bad guy?"
"Still here," I put in helpfully. The pain in my arm was irritating me beyond belief, not that the entire situation wasn't doing that all on it's own. "Not a bad guy. Just insane, apparently." The last part was more under my breath than directed at the two in front of me.
Sanji smiled at me warmly, which only managed to creep me out even further. "What?" I demanded.
"Why don't you let Chopper take care of that arm," Sanji suggested. "Then you can come up and meet the rest of the crew."
"No," I said firmly. "I want to go home." I had already had enough of this dream or hallucination or whatever I was currently suffering. And if meeting the rest of the crew was going to be as traumatizing as this pair, I would rather pass, thank you very much.
Sanji shrugged but continued to smile. "As I'm not sure where that might be," he started, "I suppose you'll have to take it up with our captain. Upstairs." His tone had changed into one that didn't allow for much argument, although his features stayed the same.
I thought about this for a moment. If it really was a dream, what would be the harm in going along with the madness until I woke up? If it wasn't… well, I figured I wouldn't care, seeing as I would then be safe in the nearest mental facility. "Fine," I answered, using my uninjured arm to push myself off the floor and ignoring the blonde man when he stepped forward to help me. "I'll talk to your captain, then I want to go home."
"Of course, my dear," Sanji agreed. He guided me out the door and down a short corridor to another room, this one feeling a little more comfortable owing to the cots on one side and desks on the other. Sanji pointed at a chair next to one of the desks, and I sat down gratefully. My hip was still throbbing from the fall.
I watched with caution as Chopper pulled a chair up beside me and opened a drawer, removing one small jar and a roll of old-fashioned bandaging. He motioned for me to give him my arm, and I complied without further resistance, completely fascinated at the way his little hooves seemed to open and close, allowing him to grip the jar. He unwrapped my ruined shirt and sighed.
"It's not a deep cut," he told me without looking up. "It'll be fine, once we put some salve on it."
I let him work, only wincing once or twice when he steadily applied the cream before wrapping my arm with the bandaging. It already didn't sting nearly as much. I was about to say thanks, as odd as it had been for a talking anthro-deer to be taking care of my injury, when Sanji spoke up from one of the cots.
"So," he said, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it in one fluid movement. "What's your name?"
I raised my gaze to him, managing to pull my attention away from Chopper. "My name?" I repeated. "It's…." Trying to answer such a simple question, my mind drew nothing but a dark blank. I stopped, frozen in horror as a cold realization seeped into my chest. "I don't remember."
