Chapter One: The Heart Pirates

I'm glad I'm part of a crew, but I'm not too sure I can trust anyone right away...especially after- no...no! I won't think about it anymore!

Yume snaps herself out of her inner turmoil as she follows Law out of the massive infirmary and into his bedroom, which is big enough for two people. The room isn't as dark as the assassin thought; the walls are white with black spots on them that match his fluffy white hat, the blankets on the bed are black and yellow like the yellow hoodie the captain wears, and the floor is a simple grey tile.

"This is officially our room," Law grins as he speaks. "I'll get you some new clothes and whatever else you're going to need."

"Right...um...thanks for letting me stay in here with you." Yume blushes slightly and walks around the room slowly.

The swordsman leans against the wall to watch his newest crew member. He is in a small trance just from watching her hips sway when she walks, only to get disturbed by Bepo.

"Captain, are we still going onto the-" The large polar bear freezes mid-sentence at the sight of Yume. "Who is that?"

Before Law can reply, both Penguin and Shachi gasp dramatically simultaneously.

"There's a woman in the submarine?!"

The swordsman just sighs and nods, confirming the existence of a woman. He decides to explain the situation to them later since they're too busy drooling over the beauty along with the remainder of the crew.

Jeez...they act like they've never seen a woman before...

Yume notices the eyes following her every move and blushes brightly, taking a seat on the comfy bed she's going to be sleeping in from now on.

"Um...hello everyone...I'm Yume..."

"Yume~ What a beautiful woman~" The crew swoons over the viewed angel.

Law rolls his eyes and gently shoves the crew out of the bedroom, shutting the door afterwards. "I'm sorry about them. I usually don't have women around."

The assassin just nods and lays back to look at the ceiling, falling asleep instantly. It's obvious she hasn't slept in a long period of time. The swordsman sighs softly and lays next to her, studying the troubled look on her face. Something is definitely wrong, but it won't be easy getting Yume to open up to him or anyone else in that matter. Law can't help but feel the need to protect this woman despite not knowing anything about her except her name. This only makes him want to know her more, as well as to see what's troubling the beauty that fell into his care.

"I thought I told you to be a good girl, Yume."

"I-I'm sorry...I won't run away again...I p-promise..."

"You better, but you're still going to get punished."

He grabbed the young girl by her short black curly hair, dragging her into a dark room with the usual punishment cage. He beat her until dusk before tossing her into the cage, and locking it tight. She was helpless especially since she was only a tender age of nine.

He kept her locked away for three weeks, only giving her water and scraps of bread to eat. The day she was released, he raped her anally for the first time.

Yume tosses and turns all night, clinging onto the sleeping figure next to her. She reddens when she sees a long tattooed arm draped over her body. The assassin quietly slips out of bed and rushes into the bathroom.

I promised myself I wouldn't do this again...but I've broken that promise twice already...

Yume quickly looks through the bathroom, tossing and scattering things across the room. She finally finds what she's looking for, a pair of scissors.

Finally...the pain will make me forget...

She takes the blade of the scissors and presses it against her thigh, slicing her skin and drawing blood. The only sounds Yume makes are sounds of painful relief. The blood drips onto the floor from the metal like raindrops dripping from the gutters onto the ground. Tears begin to fall as the assassin makes another cut on her thigh. Her thick red blood begins to drip down her thighs, and gets into the bathtub. Yume turns on the cold water to numb herself as she washes away the red fluid that makes up her entire being.

Shachi hears the sounds coming from the bathroom, quietly waking his lover.

"Penguin...Penguin wake up..."

Penguin slowly opens his amethyst eyes that are usually hidden under his oversized hat along with his short silver hair. "Hmm? Shachi what is it?"

"Someone is crying in the bathroom..." The redhead explains and sits up, rubbing his emerald eyes that are usually hidden behind sunglasses. "Can you go see who it is?"

"Yeah, I'll go..." Penguin yawns softly before getting out of bed. He makes his way towards the bathroom, eyes widening at the sight of blood mixed with water running from underneath the door. "Shachi! Wake up Captain now!"

Shachi nods and rushes to wake up the sleeping Law, dragging him into the bathroom where they find Yume sitting in the bathtub filled with her blood and water. The assassin shuts her eyes and slides underneath the mixture. The captain's eyes widen as he pulls her out of the tub, doing his best to wake her up even if it's long enough to get her into the infirmary.

"Yume...wake up!"