I do not own One Piece. Thanks to all of you for the reading, reviewing, ect. I loved typing this chapter because it was such a cute and sweet episode. Ok, enough is said. Now lets get this chapter rolling!
Chapter three: Lucy's Past! It All Started With The Straw Hat
Intro:
Wealth…
Fame…
Power…
Gol D. Roger, the King of the Pirates, had obtained this and everything else that the whole world had wanted. His dying words drove countless men into the sea.
Gol D. Roger smirked to the crowd of onlookers as he was about to hung by the gallows. He heard many people screaming and exclaiming, wanting him to tell them where his legendary treasure was buried. With his hair shadowing his eyes, he spoke his final words.
" You want my treasure? You can have it. You just have to find it first. I buried all of it together in one place. In One Piece."
These words leeward men to the Grand Line. Pursuing dreams in hopes of finding the King of the Pirates' treasure. This was known as the Pirate Era.
( FUNimation's " We Are" song plays)
" Soooo… hungry…" moaned Lucy as she stared at her reflection of the ocean water.
" When are we gonna reach land anyway?" asked Zoro, arms crossed behind his head and eyes on the clouds of the sky. The two had already been sailing for a couple of days and they had already finished the food they had packed at the Marine Base City.
" Who knows? We've been sailing for a while by just the wind and the waves. Who knows when we'll reach land?" asked Lucy, splashing the water a bit. Zoro raised his eyebrow and then scowled.
" Isn't the King or Queen of the Pirates suppose to know where their going?" he asked with a bit of irritation. Lucy shrugged.
" Not really. I've just been sailing here and there." she said. She then turned to Zoro." What about you? Aren't you some expert bounty hunter who's been sailing for a long time?" she asked.
Zoro gave a nonchalant look." I don't have any recollection of calling myself a bounty hunter." he said. He then looked back to the sky." I had set out to the sea in search of one man. I couldn't return to my village. At that point, I had no choice but to go after pirates to make a living." he said. Lucy nodded and looked back at the water.
" Yeah, I see. So your just lost." she said simply. A vein popped on Zoro's head." You don't have to put it like that!" he snapped, slamming his fist at the side of the boat. The small vessel rocked back and fourth and Lucy's straw hat flew off her head. Lucy felt her heart stop.
" Oh no! Not my Shanks' hat!" she yelled. Zoro could see the look of fright in the raven-haired girl's eyes. Was that straw hat that important to her? Either way, something made him run to the edge of the boat and grab the hat for his captain.
" This straw hat means more to me then you could ever know. It's been with me in many fights. It's something so precious, I couldn't even give it to you, Lucy."
( Flashback, ten years ago)
A crew of pirates preformed a toast, celebrating another victory for whatever matter. They were all in a restaurant in a town called Fuusha Village. At the counter of the restaurant, sitting on stools, were two people. One was a man with crimson-red hair and midnight-black eyes. Across one of his eyes were three long scars and a very light bread and mustache. On his head was a familiar straw hat. Sitting next to him was a seven-year old girl. She had short, raven-black hair tied in two small pigtails, onyx-black eyes. No scar what-so-ever was under her eye. Sounds like someone we all know?
" You gotta take me on your next adventure, Shanks. I wanna be a pirate. Just like you." said Lucy happily. The man known as Shanks laughed heartily.
" Right, as if you could ever be a pirate." he chuckled.
" Why couldn't I?" asked Lucy. A man with wavy blonde hair chuckled as well.
" Look, Luce. You might be a good swimmer and all but, you still wouldn't make it as a pirate." he said. Lucy turned to him with an annoyed look.
" But I'm an amazing fighter too! My punches are like pistols!" she exclaimed, punching her fist in front of her.
" Are they now?" asked Shanks in a bored tone.
" What's that suppose to mean!" yelled Lucy, her anger starting up.
" Heh! Heh! He means you're too much of a kid, kid."
" He's right you know. I've got boys much older than you."
Lucy turned to Shanks men angrily." I'm not a kid! I'm a grownup!" she yelled.
" Ah, calm down, Luce. Here, have some juice." said Shanks, passing the child the refreshment. Lucy's anger melted away.
" Wow, thanks, Shanks." she said, sipping on the drink.
" I don't know one pirate who drinks juice!" laughed Shanks.
" HEY, YOU TRICKED ME!" yelled Lucy, her anger growing and growing as Shanks' men laughed at her." STOP LAUGHING! THAT WAS A CHEAP SHOT!" yelled Lucy as the pirates laughed.
The door to the restaurant was kicked opened and everyone went silent as newcomers came in." Excuse us." said a gruff voice. Everyone in the room didn't move. All except Shanks, who was eating the food he had bought." So theses are what pass for pirates around these parts. Looks rather sad to me." said a man with long, greasy-looking hair as he walked in. He walked over to the counter, ignoring Shanks and Lucy. Makino, the restaurant's owner, walked over.
" Welcome, gentlemen. What can I do for you?" asked Makino. The Man smirked.
" We're mountain bandits. But we didn't come here to tear your place apart. All we want is some Sake. I'd say, ten barrels shall do." said the leader of the bandits.
" I'm sorry. But we're already out of Sake." said Makino. The man crossed his arms.
" Really? That's interesting. Then what are these pirates drinking? It doesn't look like water." he said.
" No, that just happens to be the last of what I have stocked. I'm sorry." said Makino. Shanks wiped his mouth.
" My apologies, gentlemen. Looks like me and my friend drank this place dry. But, you can have this if you want." said the red-head captain as he held up a sealed bottle of Sake to the bandit." You can have this one. It hasn't even been open and-" Shanks made no sound as the bottle was crashed over his head.
Both Makino and Lucy gasped. Sake now dripped all over Shank's clothes and a few scratches formed from the broken bottle glass." I'm wanted. There's an eight million bounty on my head. So don't insult me with one lousy bottle Sake." said the bandit.
" Just great… now the floor's wet. You got a rag I can clean this up with, Makino?" asked Shanks as he got to his knees and started picking up the glass.
" Oh no. I'll-"
Shanks could see a few stars when the plate and food hit his head. The bandit had pulled out his sword and made a huge scratch at the counter." Since you like cleaning up messes so much, Maybe you'll find this more fulfilling." said the bandit as he drew back his sword." A place with no Sake is not worth our time. Lets go." said the bandit as he and his crew walked out of the restaurant.
Lucy gritted her teeth angrily as everyone else remained silent. The young, would-be pirate was shaking with pure anger." Captain, are you ok? Are you hurt?" asked Makino as she checked Shanks. The scared-eyed captain waved his hand.
" I don't have a problem in the world, Makino." he said with a laugh. His crew then joined him in fits of laughter. Shanks threw his head and laughed as hard as the lot of them. He'd swear, he-
" WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!"
The men stopped laughing and they starred at a fuming Lucy. She was breathing heavily and glaring at them all." WHAT'S SO FUNNY! YOU'VE SHOULD'VE FOUGHT BACK, SHANKS! IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW STRONG THEY LOOKED OR HOW MANY THERE WERE, YOU CAN'T JUST LAUGH IT OFF! YOU'RE NOT A MAN OR A PIRATE!" yelled the seven-year old madly at her idol. Shanks gave a reassuring smile.
" Listen, Luce. I know how you feel. But the guy just spilled some booze on me, nothing to get me go ballistic." he said. Lucy turned with a pout." Whatever." she said. She then noticed a strange fruit in a chest. It was an odd, purple color and it had strange swirls around it. Lucy blinked. It looked… tasty.
Shanks fixed his straw hat and chuckled at Lucy, who was busy eating something." You know, Luce. There's more ways to soothe your anger besides eating." he said.
" Shut up!" yelled Lucy, who continued to eat. Shanks then noticed something.
" Wait, what are you eating?" he asked. Lucy gulped the fruit down.
" I-uh… well-I- whoa!" yelled Lucy as she was turned upside down and hung in the air by Shanks.
" You did not eat the fruit in the box, did you! Spit it out! NOW!" yelled Shanks as he shook the kid.
" Ow! Ow! I don't! Stop it, Shanks! I'm gonna!-"
Lucy's body suddenly stretched all the was to the floor and pulled back like a rubber band." What… What just happened?" asked Lucy, her face going scared.
" Lucy, you just ate the Gum-Gum Fruit! It's apart of a group called the Devil Fruit! Eating on of them causes the consumer to lose the ability to swim for the rest of their lives! That one cause your body to turn into rubber!" yelled Shanks. Lucy's eyes widen.
" NO WAY!"
" YOU DUMBASS!"
Lucy gasped as she felt the wind of her lungs knock away from her as her back slammed against a wall." Heh, this is just sad. We were just enjoying a drink and you come and disrupted it." said the Leader of the bandits, his group snickering at the site. Lucy glared at him.
" You better apologize! No one messes with Shanks' crew!" she yelled. The leader placed his foot on Lucy's head, crushing it slowly. Lucy yelped in pain.
" I don't think I insulted you directly." he said.
" You think wrong! You better apologize or else!" yelled Lucy, only to have her head crushed further.
" Big mouth, kid. That's what got you into this shit." said the leader of the bandits, remembering the event that happened a while ago.
He and his crew came back to the restaurant and they were enjoying some Sake. They were all joking about Shanks' crew as well.
" What losers! Calling themselves pirates!"
" There better off being busboys!"
" Pirates are just wimps. Nothing more. They're all talk, no action."
" SHUT UP!"
The men turned to see an angry Lucy was Makino trying to hold her back." STOP IT! YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT SHANKS AND HIS CREW! YOU BETTER SHUT UP YOUR GODDAMN MOUTHS, BANDITS!" she screamed at the top of her lungs.
Lucy yelped again as she felt her skull being crushed by the leader of the bandits." You should learn to watch your mouth, kid. No one has ever insulted me and live to tell the tail." said the leader of the bandits as he pulled out his sword.
" Stop!" yelled the mayor as he and Makino came running in." Let the child go. I deg of you." said the mayor. The leader of the bandits turned to him." Please, I have no idea what she said and I don't intend to fight you for it. I'll even pay you. Just let the child live, please." begged the mayor as he got to his knees. The leader of the bandits smirked and he pulled out the rest of his sword, the stainless steel of the blade shinning.
" As if. This rotten kid's already gotten my pissed and now, she has to pay for it with her death." he said.
" You're the rotten one!" yelled Lucy. The bandit's blade was an inch from her neck.
" And you're a lost cause. Why these two are fighting g for a punk ass like you is beyond me. You're just another piece of crap who's life will not be missed." said the bandit.
" Please no!" cried the mayor and Makino.
" Well, I was wondering why the bar was empty on such a fine day."
The two adults gasped and they turned to see Shanks and his crew right behind them." Well what do ya know, it's the mountain bandits again." said Shanks with a tip of his hat. The leader of the bandits glared at him. Lucy's eyes widen. When did Shanks show up?
" Pirates, where have you've been? Scrubbing the latrines?" asked the leader of the bandits.
" Lucy." said Shanks, ignoring the bandit." Didn't you say your punches were like pistols?" asked the red-head.
" Shut up." muttered Lucy.
" Listen, pirates. I don't give a damn why you're here, so why don't you just buzz off? Better yet, lets send you off in a casket." asked the leader of the bandits as one of his men aimed his gun at Shanks. A gun shot ran through the air.
The bandit's body fell to the ground with a thud. Everyone gasped as one of the men that blew the guy's head off just took a bite out of the turkey leg he was holding. It was one of Shanks's men." What did you fellas expect? We play nice? We're pirates for crying out loud." said one of Shanks's men. Shanks' hat suddenly shadowed his head.
" Listen, fellas. Whether I'm sprayed with alcohol or doused with food. Hell, I can even take being spat in the face and I'll just laugh it off. But," Shanks suddenly looked up with hatred in his usual happy-go-lucky eyes." If you ever hurt a friend of mine, or call them useless, then that's where I draw the line, regardless of what they done." said the captain. Lucy felt her eyes go teary.
" Shanks…" she whispered sadly.
The bandit leader crackled." So we're going to pay? Fine, lets see if you can survive. Men, kill them all!" he commanded as his men charged at the pirates with their swords in their hands.
But thrir charge was futile. All the bandits fell to the ground as only one of the pirates shot at them with great accuracy. The leader of the pirates froze, staring in horror at the pirates." Really, is that all you got?" asked the sharp shooting man.
" Wow…" whispered Lucy in awe.
" H-hold on! It was the kid who attacked us!" yelled the leader of the bandits. Shanks smirked.
" Didn't you say you had a bounty on your head?" he asked. The bandit leader suddenly pulled out a small bomb and threw it to the ground, smoke flying everywhere. The second the air cleared, the bandit and Lucy had disappeared.
" Lucy? Oh no! I let that guy take her! What are we gonna do!" yelled Shanks as he looked at his men. He was now panicking. The thought of what was happening to Lucy now was haunting him to the core.
Lucy struggled as the bandit leader held her to the sea by the front of her shirt. The surviving bandit had taken her to the middle of the sea and he was about to finish her off. The man laughed to the sky." Heh, they'll never find me." he said.
" Let me go, goddamn it! I can't wait to see Shanks rip your head off with his bare hands!" yelled Lucy as she struggled. The bandit smirked.
" Have fun sleeping with the fishes, kid." said the bandit as he threw the girl to the water. Lucy flailed and kicked, trying her best to keep her sinking body above water. The bandit laughed in cruelty, not noticing the giant Sea King that snuck up behind him. In one swift swoop, the monster ate his prey in one bite. Lucy gasped and struggled harder, feeling her life pass before her eyes as the Sea King swam to her closer and closer.
" SHHHHAAANNNNKKKSSSSS!"
Lucy's eyes widen when she saw the Sea King fall to the water from Shanks's amazing punch. The red-head held Lucy tightly in his arms and the little girl was speechless.
" Shanks…" she whispered, not believing what she was seeing. The Sea King returned to the surface to strike again when something happen. Shanks was glaring at the monster with a look so cold and dark." Get lost." growled Shanks. The Sea King froze for one second before swimming away, wanting to get away from the pissed off pirate.
The sea was now calm and only the sounds of the waves and the seagulls could be heard .Finally, Shanks spoke." I'm in your debt, Lucy. Makino told us everything, on how you defended us and the name of the crew. How you were willing to fight. You really are a strong little girl, Luce." he said. Lucy was clutching the front of Shanks shirt and she was sobbing uncontrollably. Small hiccups escaped her lips and tears cascaded down her cheeks. Shanks smiled playfully." Hey, come on. You can't cry. You're a grownup now." he said. Lucy hiccupped again.
" But… Shanks… your arm…"
" YOUR ARM!" she screamed as she sobbed harder, the site of Shanks' torn and bloody arm that would linger in her mind for the rest of her life. Shanks' arm was torn from it's socket and his blood was dripping to the water, disappearing into the murky depths. Shanks placed his good arm around Lucy and patted her head reassuringly as the girl cried and trembled. He smiled sadly at the little girl.
" It's ok, Lucy. It's just an arm. I've got another one. The only thing that matters is that you're safe." said the captain as Lucy continued to wail and clutch him. Lucy buried her face in Shanks' chest and sobbed harder, never wanting her best friend, her idol, her father-like figure, to disappear right before her eyes.
The hustle and bustle of Shanks' crew worked their hardest as they loaded up their ship with all the supplies they needed. Standing by the boat were two oh-so familiar people. " So, you're leaving?" asked Lucy, standing next to Shanks. The red-head nodded, his cape drawn over his armless socket.
" Yeah, it was a nice extended vacation but, we have to part ways now. I bet you'll miss me, right?" asked the captain. Lucy nodded.
" Yeah, but this time's different. I won't beg you to take me with you. Because I'm gonna become a pirate all on my own." said the raven-haired girl. Shanks stuck his tongue out at her .
" Bleh~ I wouldn't take you with me anyway. You'll never make it as a pirate." he said.
Lucy glared at him." NO! I WILL MAKE IT AS A PIRATE! SOMEDAY, I'M GONNA GATHER A CREW THAT'S WAY BETTER THAN YOUR'S AND I'LL FIND THE GREATEST TREASURE OF ALL TIME! THE ONE PIECE! AND THEN I'LL- I'LL- I'LL BE THE QUEEN OF THE PIRATES! I'LL SHOW YOU!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. Shanks smiled.
" You think you'll surpass us, huh?" he asked. Lucy was looking at the ground with her glare still on her. Shanks smiled again and he removed his straw hat." In that case, I'll leave this hat to you. It means more to me then anything in the world. So you better take care of it. Got it, Luce?" asked the red-head captain as he placed the hat on his best friend. The brim of the hat passed the soon-to-be pirate's eyes, tears already forming in her eyes.
Shanks and his crew were soon sailing away on their ship, the villagers of Fuusha town waving as the boat sailed away. Lucy had her hand entwined with Makino's with Shanks' hat clutched tightly in the other and to her chest. Shanks' last word echoed in Lucy's mind.
" I want you to bring back this hat to me one day. In good condition. And only once you become a great pirate. That's our promise, Lucy."
( Flashback ends)
It was now the present and Lucy had the exact straw hat held to her heart. She was also starring at it with unreadable eyes. Zoro raised an eyebrow. This was the longest time Lucy had been quiet since they started this trip." Hey, Lucy. You're gonna drop that again. I thought it was important to you." said the once bounty hunter. Lucy smiled and placed her most treasured item on her head.
" Yeah. It is, thanks." she said, giving Zoro a pearly-white grin. Zoro groaned.
" I am so hungry, it's killing me." he said. Lucy blinked and looked to the sky. She noticed that flying overhead was a giant bird. With a smile, Lucy said," Hey, lets eat that bird." Zoro rolled his head.
" How do we catch it?" he asked, his eyes widening when he saw Lucy's arm stretch and grab the sails of the small ship.
" Gum-Gum Rocket!" yelled Lucy as her body flew to the bird.
Zoro cocked his head when he noticed something. Lucy's head was trapped in the mouth of the bird. His mind then clicked. Lucy's head was stuck in the mouth of the bird… and she was flying far away. Zoro snarled and he started rowing after the flying girl. He also picked up a couple of hitch hiking pirates and they started rowing for him. Zoro had also, unfortunately, lost the site of the flying idiot. He glared at the rowing pirates." You guys made me lose site of that girl. Row faster or else." he said. The pirates began rowing faster.
" We're sorry we made you lose site of your girlfriend, Mr. pirate hunter, sir." said one of the pirates with a worried look. Zoro froze and he looked up at the sky.
" She's not my girlfriend, numbskull." he said, his cheeks flaring up. Zoro closed his eyes and sighed. This was gonna be one long day.
To Be Continued…
( End Credits roll in)
Well, I hope you all liked that chapter. I certainly enjoyed typing it. Well, I better get going. There are more stories and chapters to be typed. Please review I'll update as soon as I can. This is me saying, peace!
