A/N: Hey, everyone! Here's the second chapter! I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long! haha. I would have posted this up during the weekend, but I was at Kawaii-kon (Hawaii's only anime convention). I had a ton of fun even though I was stuck at my booth in the Artist Alley for most of the con. ^_^
Anyways, enjoy! :D
EDIT: Changed Aya's bounty from 85,000,000 Berri to 45,000,000 Berri because a low bounty seemed more realistic for her and what she's done (you'll find out soon).
Chapter Two: A Quick Getaway
The Animator was still soaring through the air, high above the auction house. She was still observing how the Supernovas were dealing with escaping. Clutching her black book closer to her chest with her right hand and gripping her animated raven with her left, she descended as she saw the pirate known as Jean Bert smash the bridge below her.
"Shit! They smashed the bridge!" She heard a Marine yell as he tried to prevent himself from falling into the water.
She looked toward the way the pirates were going and froze.
"Fuck, not one of them already." She muttered to herself as she adjusted her position on her bird and proceeded to open her book to another page of a detailed drawing. She flew high above Jean Bert and the polar bear beside him.
"You're the new guy, so you're under me, got it?" The polar bear said.
"As long as I'm not a slave no more…" Jean Bert replied without any hesitation.
"Captain! That's…" She heard one of the pirates yell as he realized what was up ahead. She noticed Law catch up with his crew mate and look at the scene before them.
"It's Eustass, and..." Law said as he saw Kidd standing there with all sorts of metal attached to his arms. He looked passed Kidd and realized just who Kidd was dealing with. "Wait, that's…"
"What the hell is a Shichibukai doing here?" Law exclaimed just as the rest of his crew caught up to him. The Animator tried to keep her distance, so she could watch unnoticed.
"Trafalgar Law…" The Shichibukai said as he looked at the two pirate crews in front of him.
"So you know my name, do you…?" Law questioned as he stared at the Shichibukai.
Just then, the Shichibukai fired a beam from his mouth at the pirate crews. The Animator had to fly to the left of her to avoid the blast. Many of them were yelling as the smoke from the blast cleared. When she got back to her spot she heard Law speak.
"…And I sure as hell don't want to meet an Admiral after all this…" Law and Kidd got into battle ready positions. "So, we'll be taking our leave, Bartholomew Kuma!"
Are they fucking serious? The Animator thought as she stared at the two Supernovas. She flipped through the pages of her book, trying to find the right picture to use. Taking on Kuma like this? They won't be able to escape him without a distraction of some sorts… Her left hand stopped on a page with a three large cheetahs on it. Its coloring and detail made it seem like it was a photograph rather than a drawing.
"Here goes nothing…" She said as she swooped down across Kidd and Law. As she passed them with her left hand above the page, she muttered,
"Animate."
The three cheetahs leapt out of the page with loud growls. They were poised a couple of feet in front of Kidd and Law, ready to attack in a heartbeat. They sheer size was massive, blocking the view of Kuma from where Kidd and Law stood. The Animator hovered above the two Supernovas as she looked Kuma. Just as Kuma was about to fire another laser beam, the cheetahs leapt into action causing him to reposition his attack onto them for the time being.
"This would be the ideal time to escape, Kidd." The Animator stated as she looked down at him. Kidd and Law both looked up at her with intense eyes.
"Aya…" Kidd said in a dark tone. The Animator glared back at him.
"Don't give me that, Eustass. Just go while you've got the chance, 'cause you know what happens when they get injured too much." She snapped at him. This wasn't the time to let pride overrule anyone's judgment. She flipped her page to another drawing; it was of two more large ravens.
"I'm not done with you, yet… I'll get you later." Kidd replied as turned to look at his crew. "Come on! We're getting out of here." He yelled as his crew started to run into the forest area on the left.
"Animate." Aya said and let the two ravens soar out of the page and land next to Law's crew. She looked to her right at Law, only to see him looking at her darkly. She let her raven land next to Law.
"Would you and your crew care for a lift?" She asked with a small smile as she tucked her book underneath her left arm. She extended her right hand out to him. "If you please, we don't have much time left."
Law didn't say anything nor did he take her hand. He just nodded his head towards his crew, signaling to them to get on as he got behind her on the raven. The bear and the guy with the hat that had the word 'Penguin' on it got onto one raven, while Jean Bert and the other guy got on the other one.
"Everyone better hold on tight!" She yelled as all three ravens shot into the air at a high speed. She slightly took note that one of Law's arms had wrapped around her waist to keep himself steady on the raven. She looked back at her cheetahs that were just barely dodging Kuma's attacks and with a flick of her left wrist, she said,
"Inanimate."
The cheetahs stopped their movements and reverted into a drawing on a piece of paper. The paper slowly floated to the ground with no trace of ever being anything but a drawing. Normally, she would snatch the paper up to get back her drawing in order to be able to use it again, but not this time. She couldn't risk it with a Shichibukai after the man behind her.
"That's quite the useful trick, Miss…" Law whispered in her ear. Aya froze in her spot; she could feel his chest pressed firmly against her back. She wondered when he had gotten this close to her. She could practically hear the undertone of malice in his politely sarcastic manner and it scared her.
"Aya. Just like Kidd said." She told him as she figured that was why he drawled out the word 'Miss.' She could almost feel the smirk form on his lips.
"And just how did you come across, Mister Eustass?" He asked as she felt his hot breath on her ear. She tried to look at him through the corner of her eyes.
"I'm not inclined to tell you anything, Mister Trafalgar." She replied coolly, mocking his fake politeness, as all three ravens started descending into the Tourist zone of Sabaody Archipelago. She set her destination to this zone of Sabaody because it was the furthest away from where they had been. Also, she could easily leave behind this odd crew in a crowded place like the Tourist zone. As they were a few feet above the buildings in the zone, she decided now was a good time.
"Inanimate."
All three of the ravens lost their flight formation and reverted back to the two drawings she had earlier. She quickly grabbed the drawing of the raven she and Law were on, pocketing the drawing in her book. As they all continued to fall to the ground, she made her way to the other drawing of the two ravens. She didn't want to lose any more of her precious drawings; she couldn't afford it.
She didn't care to notice how the others were handling themselves as she quickly snatched the drawing into her book and braced herself to land on one of the buildings' roof. She landed on the roof with a roll; she didn't want to accidentally damage anything. She quickly made a run for the edge of the roof as she heard the others come tumbling down. She didn't care to look back at them to see how well they landed as she jumped off the roof. It was only a regular two-story building, the ground wasn't too far.
As her feet touched the ground, she dashed into the crowded street of the Tourist zone.
Law and his crew had landed without any trouble just as they saw her leap off the roof. They all watched as her slim figure got lost in the crowd. Law adjusted his Nodachi on his shoulder and started to walk toward the spot on the roof he had seen Aya jump from. His crew followed him without a word. They all knew that it was time they headed back to their vessel.
Law held his ever present smile as his storm grey eyes were still following the young woman's figure weaving through the crowd. He was intrigued by this woman and her abilities. There was no doubt about it; he was going to make sure that he encounters her again. She would be very useful if he could somehow get her on his crew, just like he did with Jean Bert.
-x-
Aya had made her way to a lone bar called Shakky's Rip-Off bar. She opened the door only to find the Strawhat crew inside with the mermaid and fishman. She looked straight at the bar counter where a tall, slim woman with short black hair was standing. The woman was wiping the counter down next to Luffy, who was eating, and Rayleigh.
Aya paid no mind to the stares she was getting from the Strawhat crew. She came here with a purpose; she wanted questions answered and everyone in Sabaody knew that Shakky almost always had the answers. She looked at Rayleigh as he casually took a sip from his cup of alcohol. But since he was here, she might have a better chance at getting her answers.
"What's a pretty thing like you doing here?" The woman at the counter asked. No doubt that she was Shakky; Aya closed the door and walked up to the bar.
"I'm here to find some answers, Shakky. I was told you were the person I should see, but…" Aya looked back at Rayleigh. "Since you are here, Ray-san, can you help me?"
Rayleigh looked at her. She looked familiar in the sense that her features reminded him of someone he knew. She smiled slightly at him, meaning she already knew who she reminded him of.
"You're Kokoro Makko's daughter." He stated rather than asked as he took another sip of his drink.
"Good to see that my old man wasn't lying when he said he knew you."
"WHAT?" All of the Strawhat Pirates yelled in unison as they all looked at her. If what she just said is true, that meant her father must have been a part of the Roger Pirates. Aya just laughed; there was something about being in the presence of this crew that made her feel like everything was natural. Like it was okay for her to be here with them; to be able to trust them.
"You must be Kokoro Aya, The Animator, with a bounty of 45,000,000 Berri. Also, known for being very skilled in stealth and hiding from the Marines." Shakky commented as she lit up a cigarette and analyzed the young woman in front of her.
"Please, I'm hardly worth that much." Aya said with a smile as she took a seat next to Rayleigh. She set her book down on the counter carefully.
"What is it that you need from me, young lady?" Rayleigh asked, pouring another glass with the bottle of alcohol in his hand. He held the glass out to her.
"It's not a matter of need, but want." Aya said as she took the drink without hesitation. Rayleigh raised a brow in a questioning manner. She took a quick sip of the alcohol, feeling the burn as it went down her throat. She set down her drink on top of her book and looked Rayleigh in the eyes. Though her expression was relaxed and casual, her eyes held a storm of emotions that she couldn't hide. With a deep breath she whispered,
"I want you to call my father, Ray-san."