Chapter 3: One Month

"Well…uh…you see…" I stammered, trying to come up with a decent excuse as to why I appeared. "It's like…uh…"

"It's okay…if you're not comfortable talkin' about it. I won't force it out of you." Nojiko calmly stated as she placed the final morsel in her mouth. It was then the smell of stew hit my nose, stirring a reaction from my stomach as it gurgled from lack of sustenance. Taking a seat at the position opposite her, I began wolfing down the meal before me as though it was my last. Nojiko merely giggled at the sight of me inhaling her cooking.

"Guess being asleep for two days causes one to build up quite the appetite." She stated with a smirk.

"Two days?" I garbled, food dropping back into my bowl.

"Hahaha, yep."

I was somewhat surprised…my record for sleeping in one period was 13 hours. What? You try not entering a coma when in a hammock on a summer's night. The shock passed as my gut cried for more stew, and I answered by stuffing the remainder of my meal down my throat. After finishing my grub, I grabbed both of our dishes and brought them to the sink, washing and drying them. As I turned back to the table, Nojiko stood, her back to me.

"Ok, big guy, since you're staying here for a bit till you heal up completely, you're gonna be my helper around here!" Nojiko spun around and wagged her finger at me, an evil grin on her face. "So come on now, we got oranges to pick…and with a big guy like you, I can get a lot of oranges to get into town."

Sighing a breath of exasperation, I went into the orchard and began harvesting alongside my new roommate. During our working, she told her story about Nami and Bellemere, the deal with Arlong, and about the island's troubles with his gang. I've heard this story before…but hearing the pain in her voice, seeing the hurt in her eyes as she spun her tale…hit home for me.

"So Khurt, you got any family?" She asked as she turned towards me, throwing another sack of oranges into my already massive bungle of sacks on my back.

"Yeah…I'm actually the youngest of four…two older brother then my sister…then me." I said, a breath of homesickness escaping me.

"Hahaha! A big guy like you is the baby of the family!" She jeered as she held her stomach laughing.

"Shaddup! I'm not the baby! I'm actually the biggest in my family!" I shouted back…I hated when people said that. This caused her to laugh more and toss an orange at me.

"Alright Break Time…enjoy your snack." She said as she strutted away towards the house. Taking her advice, I sat down in the grove and leaned against one of the mikan trees, munching on its fruit. Believing now to be a good time as any, I focused my thoughts and said calmly within my head, "Lilynette…"

"Yessir, Boss!" The small sprite appeared once again upon my shoulder, a good size couch for her to sit upon. "Whatcha need?"

"Ok, so if I'm in this world…that must mean there's some form of imbalance in it correct?"

"You got it!"

"And…I'm supposed to fix it?"

"Right again!"

"Like…what? I don't get it…"

"Well…" She said as lifted a finger to her chin and lifted her head, looking upward as she thought how to explain it. "There are these creatures…called Reavers. They're beings of chaos, and they like nothing more than to sow discord and mayhem throughout the worlds. They hate Avatars, and you're likely to be a target for them."

"Great. Not ten minutes in this world and I already have something wanting to kill me…Grand."

"That's why you have your magic, silly!"

"And about my lightning powers…are they like Enel's powers? Like I can become lightning as well as shoot it and transform?"

"Nope…it's not a Devil Fruit…its magic….but if it grows powerful enough, it could develop into a similar state of ability."

"How do I make my magic stronger?"

"Become physically stronger!"

"Huh?"

"You see," She began explaining as she hopped off my shoulder and drifting in front of my face, her umbrella opened as she floated in the air. "Your magic is a representation of your soul…and your soul is strengthened by the experiences of your body…and in this world, your strength is magnified 3-4 times what it would be in your old world."

"Ah…so if I train my body, my magic becomes more powerful as well is what you're saying…"

"Aye!"

"Is there a spell book or something with different spells I could learn? Or what?"

"Nope, your spells aren't like spells in like video games…your 'spells' are what develop in your head, you just need to will it to do other things than strike an opponent with a lightning bolt."

"Hrmm…I see." Rubbing my beard, I was thinking about all the possibilities of what I could do when I heard the voice of my temporary roommate approaching.

"Hide!" I hissed as Lily, but she remained in the air where she was as Nojiko came into the clearing.

"Hey, come on lazy bones! We got more chores to do!" She stated as she gave a light boot to my ribs, chuckling as she helped me up. I gave an inquisitive eyebrow to my partner-in-crime as she followed the two of us out of the grove.

"Don't worry, Boss…while I'm in this dimension, only you can see and hear me…I'm like the Great Gazoo." Lilynette giggled as she landed upon the top of my head.

"Lucky me." I thought while I and my blue-haired slave driver came to a large pile of logs.

"Well, Doc said you were well enough to do some firewood, the food you ate and the bandages and medicine don't come free you know." She said with an evil grin on her face before disappearing around the corner of the house.

"Hate doing firewood…" I mumbled as I began splitting. "Wait a minute!" My brain clicked before I began, digging through my vest's pockets…and finding what I was looking for, my MP3 player.

"Sweet…" Chuckling to myself as I plugged in my headphones, starting up my player, I find my Work playlist and began playing it… "Ah…the Black Mages…good intro song" I said inside my head as Vamo'Alla Flamenco came on, me turning my axe into the lute from the beginning before splitting the first log in front of me.

Several hours later, I brushed the sweat pouring from my forehead, having completed a good portion of my task…another hour or so's work would finish it. The sun was beginning to set upon the ocean when Nojiko came out with a grin on her face.

"Good work, Khurt…Pays to have a man fall from the sky sometimes." Giggling a bit at her own joke, she motioned for me to follow her inside for dinner. Looking at the newspaper while in the middle of a grilled cheese, I noticed the date…May 10th. This is where my unhealthy knowledge of One Piece came in handy, knowing that Luffy had left his hometown a while ago, leaving on his 17th birthday, which just so happened to be a few days ago. He was probably getting Zoro right now, meaning he would come here and beat the crap out of Arlong in a few weeks. That's when an idea popped into my head…The Straw Hats will be here in a few weeksMaybe…maybe I could join them if I help them bring down Arlong!

That's when a foreign voice entered my head, "Heehee, maybe if you actually trained your Avatar powers by then. Remember at your current level, you're about as strong as Johnny or Yosaku."

"Lilynette?" I pondered.

"You didn't think I couldn't hear your thoughts? I'll pop in and snoop around when I feel like it." She giggled in my head.

"Little creepy…but oh well…anyway…you're suggesting I go train or something?"

"Exactly, grasshopper!"

"Hrmmm…I did notice some jungle-y areas of the island…Alright! It's decided! I'm gonna to train my powers for a full month before Luffy and the others get here!

Needless to say, Nojiko was quite surprised when I told her I was leaving for the wilderness of the island the next morning, a small backpack strapped to me.

"Why are you going? Your injuries aren't even fully healed you moron!" She scolded at me, a hand on her hip as she leaned towards me with her other hand pointing at me, wagging her finger.

"Hehe sorry, Nojiko, but I need to continue my training…I just…had a feeling." I said, scratching the back of my head, until I looked up at her and turned serious. "In one month's time, your sister will return with a medium-sized sloop ship…and when that happens, a battle will ensue for control of this island."

Before she could reply, I whipped out a metallic rod, a simple black cloth tied to it and handed it to her. "Plant this on the roof of your house when Nami returns…and it'll signal me to come back." She merely shook her head and accepted the item.

"(Sigh)…Alright Khurt…though it sounds pretty crazy." She replied.

"Hah! Even I thought I was nuts when I thought about it…but sometimes you just need to go on instinct…" I said as I turned down the path I was heading for. "Thanks for everything Nojiko…I'll see you later." Waving as I walked away, a smile crept on my face…as I swore to be a Straw Hat…and finally stop being a slacker.