"You need to eat Kaya."
Raindra urged her young friend as she pushed the bowl of soup closer to her. Her father had left Raindra in charge of caring for the young heiress. Since her parents' passing, Raindra and her father had taken a special place in Kaya's life. It had been four years since the two of them had showed up on the island. Raindra wasn't sure what, but something had changed in her father ever since her mother left. During the crew's excursions at sea and land her father would become more and more agitated until he locked himself in his room aboard the ship and only came out to give orders and eat dinner. When they suddenly landed on Gecko Island and wandered to Syrup Village, Raindra had expected more of the violent attacks and merciless looting the crew had done on every other island so far. She had always stayed on the ship during those times, or her father would order Jango or the Meowban Brothers to act as her bodyguards and she would explore the island if it caught her interest. So when her father left over half the crew on the ship and only took her, Jango, and the Meowban Brothers Raindra was rather confused. Her confusion grew even more when Jango showed up with new clothes for them all.
It hadn't taken her father long after knocking on the door to the biggest house on the island to sweet talk his way into a new life. That was the day Raindra first met Kaya and her were all very sweet and let them stay at the mansion as long as her father worked for them and she promised to play with Kaya. The two girls quickly became friends and the years flew by. Birthday parties, formal classes, etiquette classes, slumber parties, movie nights, fights and make ups; the two had bonded so much in the last four years that Raindra considered the young heiress to be her sister. So the fact Kaya's health had been declining so rapidly in the last year that she was on bed rest under doctor's orders was something that worried the young bluenette. She was sure Kaya remembered the same sudden illness taking first her mother, then her father. Raindra wasn't sure she could handle losing her best friend.
"You act just like a mother Raindra."
Kaya joked, but Raindra was pleased to see the other girl pick up the spoon and start eating.
"Well someone has to make sure you eat. If you don't, you won't have any strength to get better."
"How lucky I am then to have such a diligent care-taker."
Kaya said with a smile before eating a few spoonfuls of the soup Raindra had brought her. Ever since Kaya's health started declining, Raindra had taken over making sure Kaya ate healthy to help her recover as much as she can. She studied up on different cuisine to find the best combination of food to give the most nutrients. It was one of the few things she had shown interest in that her father hadn't refused to allow her to pursue. Swordplay, no. Self-Defense, no. Planning the crew's next move, no.
"So good as always Rain."
Kaya said with a pleased sigh after finishing the bowl of soup Raindra had prepared.
"I'm glad you liked it, you need some rest or do you feel up to company?"
Raindra asked as she gathered the dirty dishes and walked them to the door. She handed them to Buchi and he took them to the kitchen since Sham brought them to the bedroom. Her father insisted the brothers carry the meal to Kaya's room even though Raindra didn't mind doing it herself, but he insisted that she not have to cook and deliver it so she didn't argue.
"Some company would be lovely."
Smiling, Raindra practically tan back towards Kaya's King-sized bed and jumped. The two girls giggled as the bed jostled them both around. Kaya half-heartedly threw one of her pillows at Raindra and the bluenette retaliated with a throw pillow that had been forgotten at the foot of the bed. Laughter and squeals of delight filled the room as the two continued their pillow fight, the sound drowning out everything else and being fully ignored by Raindra's bodyguard standing outside in the hall. Jango had learned along the years of being assigned to follow Raindra that sometimes it was in his best interest to give her space. She wasn't the daughter of the man of a thousand plans for nothing. If he got on her nerves, she would spend the remainder of her punishment coming up with ways to make him despise his job. Buckets full of feathers after walking into a plastic sheet spread across the doorway smeared with honey, hair remover in his shampoo bottle, holes poked into the center of his sunglasses-he still wasn't sure how she managed to do that and not break them-so he was content to let her do her own thing so long as she didn't blatantly try sneaking out again.
The two girls fell back, pillows falling from hands, in exhausted huffs. Both were breathing heavily, but smiles were present on their faces. Their laughter turned into soft giggles as they tried calling down. The sudden pink, pink, pink at Kaya's window made the dup sit up in unison before waiting to see if they could hear it again. After a few moments another series of pinks confirmed that the girls had indeed heard something. Raindra looked at Kaya who nodded her consent, then she moved and opened the window to see what was causing the sound. Storm-cloud eyes widened upon seeing a familiar sheep-haired boy in overalls casually sitting on a branch in the tree nearest Kaya's window.
"Usopp!"
Kaya shouted surprised, but happy to see the brunette regardless. Raindra simply moved back from the window and resumed her spot on Kaya's bed. It wasn't the first time Usopp had come to see Kaya, the two were good friends. Usopp told funny stories and Kaya enjoyed hearing them. Usopp didn't seem to mind if she was there and Raindra assumed it had something to do with the fact he didn't have the need to try and impress Kaya like he did with the rest of the Usopp Pirates.
"Hey Kaya, I'm here on a rescue mission. Have you seen your friend Raindra?"
He asked, piquing Raindra's attention.
"You're looking for me?"
Raindra asked surprised and saw what she thought to be relief flash across Usopp's face.
"Of course, no member of the Usopp Pirates is allowed to miss a meeting without their captain's express permission!"
He exclaimed loudly and Raindra stared at him like he was an idiot for a moment before his words registered.
"Wait a minute….does that mean I get to join you guys?"
She asked, a hopeful smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.
"Only if you think you can get away. This should be a good test to see if you have what it takes to-"
Raindra stopped listening at that point, said her goodbyes to Kaya, climbed up onto the windowsill and jumped out.
"Let's go Captain!"
Raindra said over her shoulder with a wide smile as she passed Usopp on the branch he was sitting on and quickly started climbing down the tree.
"Wha-Wait for me!"
Usopp exclaimed before scrambling down the tree after her. Raindra Was waiting for him at the foot of the tree.
"This is supposed to be a rescue mission."
Usopp pouted as he lost his footing on the way down and fell face first onto the ground. Raindra stifled a giggle as she helped Usopp to his feet.
"Then lead the escape Captain."
Raindra said and didn't miss the way Usopp straightened his back in an attempt to look the part of the role he was playing. She kept it to herself that he failed miserably.
Raindra happily followed Usopp along the hedges lining the mansions courtyard and watched as he pulled a block of shrubbery from the middle of the hedges, it had been perfectly cut and left no sign of being loose once out back in place. The fact she had lived here for four years and had no clue how Usopp successfully kept getting in and out of the courtyard without being caught made her want to hit her head against something.
'Well that would have made sneaking out a lot easier.'
Raindra thought to herself as she ran after Usopp after he out the block of shrubbery back, seamlessly sealing the wall of hedges once more. Usopp turned to her with a huge smile that she returned before her eyes widened in fear and the smile fell from her face.
"Run!"
She whispered hastily as she grabbed Usopp by the front of his overalls and ran in the direction of the village.
"Wha-? Why are we running!?"
Usopp shouted and Raindra cut him a glare that made him do a zipper motion with his lips, but it was already too late.
"Get back here!"
The sound of her uncle's voice made Raindra put as much power into her legs as she could as she dragged Usopp along behind her.
"It's my uncle Jango, he is in charge of watching me. He must have noticed I wasn't in Kaya's room anymore."
Raindra explained as the two of them tried to outrun Jango, but her uncle was used to chasing her down by now.
"He's gaining on us!"
Usopp shouted worriedly and Raindra tried thinking of a way to get them out of this situation as they ran into the village. She spotted a bunch of barrels a few yards away and pointed them out to Usopp.
"You hide, I'll lead him away and come back for you."
Usopp said and before Raindra could try to convince him otherwise, the brunette had run off shouting taunts at her uncle.
'Idiot, if he catches you my dad will make sure you never return to the manor ever again.'
Raindra thought, but decided to trust Usopp as she quickly scrambled over the lip of the barrel and hunkered down inside.
Time seemed to slow down for Raindra as she kept her ears peeled for any noises outside that would let her know how things were going. She didn't dare take a peek outside in case it gave away her hiding spot. She wasn't sure what possessed her to trust Usopp, especially given the fact he had been consistently rude and exclusive to her for about a year now. However, he did come to rescue her when her father wouldn't allow her outside. Maybe he wasn't so bad afterall.
As more time passed, Raindra started to get worried that perhaps her uncle really had managed to capture Usopp and now he was looking for her. Should she stay put? Should she make a break for it? She'd have to go back home at some point, was there a point to hiding in the first place?
'Of course there is! I demand my freedom!'
Raindra chastised herself for her doubts before deciding to give Usopp a few more minutes before she was going to make a break for the Usopp Pirates' base. She was pretty certain if Usopp did manage to get away from Jango that he would head there.
'Alright, I'll just meet him there.'
Right as Raindra decided to make her move, there was a knock on the outside of the barrel she was hiding in.
"That you Raindra?"
The whispered sound of Usopp's voice made a smile spread across Raindra's face.
"You managed to get away from uncle Jango?"
She asked as Usopp helped her out of the barrel.
"Of course."
"I didn't think you'd come back for me."
The bluenette said once she had both feet on the ground and didn't miss the hurt look that crossed Usopp's face.
"I'll always come back for my friends, that's a promise."
Usopp told her and Raindra couldn't help but smile, her heart feeling lighter than it had in ages.
They made it to the usual meeting place of the Usopp Pirates, Raindra saw the other three members standing beneath the flag tied to the top of a pole in the center of the clearing.
"Captain!"
The three boys chorused before running forward and greeting them. Apparently her absence had bothered them and so they devised a plan to free her. Raindra didn't think she had made any kind of progress in her attempt to befriend the boys, but she found she was rather pleased to have been proven wrong.
"Was it hard saving her?"
Piiman asked, voicing the other two boys' curiosity from the looks on their faces and Raindra stood quietly as she learned of the friends she wasn't aware she had.
"It was nothing for the mighty Captain Usopp!"
Usopp exclaimed proudly, making Raindra smile.
"So...not that I'm not grateful, but what made you change your mind?"
The young bluenette asked, unable to help her curiosity. From the way Usopp flushed when all eyes turned on him Raindra would have thought it was a crush, but the space between them and the fact Usopp seemed too innocent for such thoughts made her realize he simply wasn't used to being put on the spot, despite his bravado.
"Why not? I couldn't really see a reason to keep telling you no. The more the merrier!"
Usopp responded finally, a friendly smile spreading across his face that was mirrored by the boys surrounding him. Raindra was a little bewildered with the sudden change in events, but couldn't see any hidden messages in the way the boys smiled and a smile of her own spread across her face at finally having made some friends on her own.
Four years later…
Releasing the hold she had on the cliffside, Raindra let herself fold backwards as she fell and upon seeing the bright yellow flower with unusual purple thorns, smiled as she flipped her body so she was right side up as she fell. Reaching out and managing to grab the flower that only grew on the cliff face, Raindra couldn't help but laugh at the shocked cries of disbelief from Piiman and the others as she finished yet another high ranked assignment from their captain.
After having allowed herself to freefall as far as she dared, Raindra shifted her body so she fell closer to the cliffside then kicked off once she was as close as she needed to be. The young bluenette suddenly soared skyward, always kicking off from the side of the cliff right before gravity started to take effect again. Landing a few feet from Piiman and the other Usopp Pirates, Raindra proudly held out the odd flower their captain had read about and found out it grew around this part of the ocean. It had been Raindra's mission from the captain to roam the island and see if she could find a yellow flower with purple thorns growing anywhere on the island. She was the one who decided to bring it back, this decision being what had her climbing down into the ravine.
"Wow Rain, is there anything you can't do?!"
Usopp asked upon her and the boys returning to base. As small droplets of water started falling from the sky, the young bluenette frowned as she got to get feet.
"Control the weather so I don't have to go home."
Usopp sent his friend a sympathetic smile, it was no secret that Raindra and her father didn't get along. Over the last four years Usopp had spent with her, Raindra had continuously defied her father and even actively went out if her way to interfere with whatever he happens to be working on. Raindra had explained who her father was long ago, the fact his best friend was the daughter of a notorious pirate scared him to death, but he wasn't afraid of Raindra. No, he was scared of her father. She had long ago given up hiding the fact she snuck out to hang out with Usopp and the boys, but despite her father's best attempts none of his men could stop her anymore. The last four years of her dodging, sneaking, and planning her ways out everyday to enjoy her freedom had turned his best friend into quite an agile young woman. The boys insisted on starting battle training soon and Usopp isn't sure he wants to. On the one hand, it would be good for them to prepare for when they set out to sea. On the other, he just knows if he does Raindra will show him up and he couldn't live with himself if the boys suddenly wanted her to be captain instead of him.
"I'm sorry Rain. You know my place is always open."
Usopp offered as he got to his feet and started down the path back to town.
"Yeah, I'll see you."
Raindra mumbled as a quiet reply before heading in the direction of the mansion that acted as her prison. Usopp didn't envy her as he had before knowing her. She had Kaya still, but with her health declining they both may be close to losing a friend neither of them were ready to say goodbye to. So there really wasn't any form of warmth in those halls for Raindra to go home to.
Raindra sighed for what had to be the hundredth time as she walked the far coast line that lead back to the mansion. She could have taken the main city roads like Usopp to get back home, but she wasn't suppose to be out in the first place. Her father was going to be upset with her regardless upon her return, though there was no need to make it worse for herself by taking a stroll through the city. Living in the mansion the last few years had given her father more of a superiority complex than he had already had as captain of a notorious pirate crew. The older she grew, the more she learned about the kind of man her father was and the more she grew to despise him. It had been he who sent her mother away. It had been he who prevented her from having friends. It had been he who punished her for simply wanting to be a child. It had been he who had killed and ordered the death of hundreds of people throughout his reign as pirate captain. She was sure that wasn't everything he had done, but no matter how hard she tried she couldn't figure out what his goal to having come to this island was. Usually she was able to figure out what her father was up to after a while, the only other time she hadn't been able to was when her mother left and her father had done nothing but help speed up the process of her departure.
Shaking her head of thoughts that would only upset her further, Raindra moved to step away from the coast line as she got closer to the area where the ground became unstable to walk on after years of ocean waves colliding with it and eroding away the base of the cliffside. The combination of her absent-mindedness and the rain lead to the young woman realizing too late that she had gone too far out onto the unstable ground as it gave way beneath her. She tried doubling back as quickly as she could, but it was no use as more and more of the ground beneath her feet gave way. Then, she was falling. Where most would have screamed or been afraid, Raindra remained calm and let her eyes scan the area as she fell. She was too far from the cliffside to slow her descent and even if she was close enough, the rocks and soil were too loose to provide any form of stability for her to catch herself.
Looking around for some way to prevent her untimely death upon impact, Raindra noticed a particularly large wave hurtling towards the cliff and realized it would hit before she reached the ground. Frowning at her luck, Raindra just hoped the impact of the wave wouldn't be hard enough to make her smack into the face of the cliff. Without much else in the way of options, Raindra brought her arms and legs in as close to her body as she could as she continued to fall. The survival rate of her predicament wasn't looking good, but Raindra smiled sadly to herself as she realized she would rather die here than return to that house. Closing her eyes, Raindra took a deep breath seconds before she was swallowed whole by the crashing waves.