Chapter 2

"Anyone up for breakfast?"

"Your question is invalid," the boy with the book said.

"What?"

"You asked if we´re up for breakfast. We´re already up, and we´re not having breakfast, so there´s no point in asking."

"Ah, okay. What I meant to say was, are you hungry?"

"Our nutrition levels are normal. Do you request an increase in diet in regard for exigent muscle activity in the near future?"

"Ehrm, I think so?" The boy pulled a paper from his pocket, and handed it to Sabo. "What's this?"

"A list of the possible, and preferred, eatables for each one of us. Give or take 15 % reliability based on current moods and environments."

"What?" Sabo asked again.

"If you're going to assist us, you'll find this information useful. Keep it, I got copies."

Sabo shook his head and put the paper in his pocket. "Guess you don´t want to eat yet. Wanna tell me your names?"

"Naturally." The boy pressed his glasses further up his nose. "I´m Filip." He pointed at the blushing girl next to him. "This is Cecilia. She´s 11 years old."

"H-hello," the girl stuttered. She looked up for a moment.

"Hi," Sabo said, and tried to meet her eyes, but she had already bowed her head even deeper than before, completely covering her face in shadows.

"This is Agnes. She is 13," Filip said and pointed at the girl leaning against the wall.

"Hello," Sabo said and smiled. She made the tiniest nod at him.

"She doesn´t speak much." Filip corrected his glasses once again. "And the small one is Tiger. He´s 7."

Sabo crouched by the bed. "Hi, Tiger." This name was easy to remember. "How are you?"

"Fine, thank you." The boy smiled, revealing an empty hole in the row of teeth. "You´re a real warrior?"

"Yeah, I guess I am."

"Have you ever reached level 15?"

"What do you mean?"

Tiger sat up and waved with his hand, and Filip soon handed him a square, colorful snail. "This game is called ´notorious tale of the fire dragon´. Linus said it´s one of the games with the least propaganda in it, so I brought it here. Look!" Sabo squeezed his eyes to look at the snail, which had a screen with rapidly changing images. Tiger pressed several buttons fast. "To defeat the dragon, you have to find a way to control its fire. At level 15, you´ll fight for the fire amulet..." His words trailed off as he focused completely on the snail toy.

"Ehm, maybe I´ll look later," Sabo mumbled.

"You fight a dragon! How is that not propaganda? The name of the Revolutionaries´ leader is Dragon!" Cecilia angrily bursted out at her brothers. Then she looked at Sabo. "Ah, sorry for yelling," she whispered, and turned away.

"You don´t really have to apologize," Sabo mumbled. "Anyways, do you want me to show you around Baltigo?"

"The wilderness is irrelevant. Although, a tour around the island´s fortress would be practical," Filip said.

"I just have to finish this!" Tiger said. Agnes walked over to the bed and held out her hand, and the boy silently and obediently handed her the toy. "Alright."

"Let´s go!" he said. "I hope you will like it here."

"And once you´ve gone through this gate, you´ll end up here, at the main courtyard. To the right are, as you maybe remember, the sleeping quarters, and to the left is the material rooms and archives. If you continue on this road ahead, you´ll sooner or later arrive to the sea. Do you want to go there now?"

"I have to go to the toilet," Tiger complained.

"You just went a ten minutes ago. Perhaps you should instead go and have your bladder checked," Cecilia retorted loudly, making the little boy cower slightly. "You´re such a whiner."

"It´s alright, we can go watch the sea after lunch instead," Sabo said.

Filip moved closer to him. "What pastime activities are standard here?"

"What?"

"He wonders what you do for fun," Cecilia explained. Unlike her sister, she spoke often, but she rarely looked at him.

"Oh. Well, we hang out a lot. Spar with each other. Eat, share stories and sometimes parties, when we aren´t on duties or missions."

"Have you been on a lot of missions?" Filip asked.

Sabo noticed that everyone was watching him curiously. Even Agnes had sparks of interest in her eyes.

"A few. I was badly wounded when I first got here, so I had to recover for a while." He pointed at the scar on his face.

"How terrible," Cecilia whispered.

"Yes... but, don't worry about it. Anyways, I have helped out the Revolutionaries on a few occasions."

"Helped out? Aren't you a revolutionary yourself?" Filip said.

"Of course I am!"

"Doesn't sound like it." Filip corrected his glasses once more.

Sabo's smile wavered, and he clenched his teeth together hard. He was beginning to lose his patience with the younger boy. "You comment on everything I say! It's so annoying! Can't you just shut up?!" he yelled.

"Well, you did the job alright for the first hour."

"I didn't mean to make him cry," Sabo said, while staring down at the floor instead of looking at Dragon.

"You realise I can't let you take care of the children anymore, do you?"

Sabo felt initially happy - not having to take the marine brats everywhere he went was what he wanted, after this morning. But then he remembered the conversation with the soldiers during breakfast. If there was something Sabo hated, it was to admit defeat. He stood up. "I want another chance with them. I deserve another chance."

"If that´s how you feel, talk to the children. Ask what they want." Dragon lowered his head over some documents, and Sabo understood that was his cue to leave. But before he went through the door, the leader spoke again. "Four is not a small number. I sent another person to help you out. She should arrive shortly."

"She?"

The door opened right before Sabo. In strolled a short, brown-haired girl. She threw one look at him before she ignored him. "Hello," she said to Dragon.

A cold suspicion grew in his stomach. "What is she doing here?"

"Koala has been excused from training due to an injury. She agreed to help you."

She shivered. "Wait, I have to work with him? I didn´t know that!"

"I have to work with her?!"

"Good that you´re acquainted with each other. You may go."

"But... no!" Koala said.

"That´s my line!"

She shook her head. "This is ridiculous. We can´t work together."

"You´re both Revolutionaries. You´re part of the same team, cooperation is to be expected. Now, I have got things to do, so..." Dragon waved his hand, and they had no choice but to leave.

He held the door for her. "After you."

"No, ladies first," she retorted.

"What the..."

"Go." A small wind passed through the room. They rushed through the door at the same time, bumping into each other.

"Distance, please." She waved with her hand in front of her face. "Gosh, when was the last time you showered?"

"I´ve been very busy!"

Inside the room, Dragon smirked to himself. "This´ll be interesting."

Some minutes later, they had joined the children, who were waiting in a nearby room. Sabo looked directly at Filip, who wasn't crying anymore, but there were still red marks below his eyes.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you." Sabo walked towards him, and held out his hand. But before he reached him, Agnes stepped in between him and Filip. She stared at him angrily, and wouldn't let him take another step. "I'm sorry, okay? I won't lose my temper again."

"Good luck with that," Koala muttered.

He turned towards her. "Why are you still here?"

She sighed. "We came to get another chance to look after you. Because this blonde idiot made a fool of himself."

"I could consider a second chance. But only if I know a little more. What is your experience of children caretaking?" Filip asked.

"I know everything there is to know about it," Koala said, confidence in her voice.

"I do too," Sabo said.

"Have you ever taken similar duties like this one?"

"No, I haven't... but I was taken care of well when I was a child!" Koala said.

"I didn't need looking after when I was younger. I took good care of myself."

"Sure you did. If you had better parents to look after you, you might have become a normal person."

"I'm not normal now?"

"You grew up on your own?" Cecilia asked.

"Not exactly. I lived with my brothers. And some mountain bandits looked after us. Well, at least they tried..."

"Sure you did." Koala rolled her eyes. "I was raised by pirates. It might sound as bad as bandits, but they were the kindest people I have ever met."

Pirates? Sabo wondered, and looked at her curiously, until she noticed his gaze.

"What?" she snarled.

He quickly became annoyed again, which also showed on his face. "Nothing! I don´t care!"

"So you grew up with criminals? That explains a lot of things, actually," Filip mumbled.

"I'm hungry!" Tiger yelled.

"Be a little patient, would you?!" Cecilia half-shouted.

"So we have to choose between you two or other babysitters?" Filip asked. He and Koala nodded. "Give us some minutes. We have to discuss what to do, right?"

"Fine, go ahead."

The four children rose from the couches they'd been sitting on, and went to the other side of the room, where they stood in a circle, heads close together.

"They're really weird, and violent and potentially dangerous, but if we don't pick them we might get an even more eccentric person to look after us," Filip spoke in a low voice.

"Like the big she-guy! But he was funny."

"It doesn't sound nice to say 'she-guy', Tiger," Cecilia reprimanded.

"But he is!"

"Argh!"

"Be quieter! They're watching us! Anyways, they fight with each other a lot, which is advantageous for us. I suggest we take off when we have the chance. We´ll do better on our own. What do you say?"

"You´re so childish! I´m staying with Sabo-san," Cecilia said.

"And the girl."

"Yeah, her too..."

"Tiger, do you want to stay with the Revolutionaries?"

"No! I want to go with you, Filip."

"Okay, good. Are you coming too, Agnes?" The older girl nodded. "Then, let's go announce our decision."