"The Outcasts"
(c) Mei Evelyn
A One Piece Fanfiction
One Piece (c) Eiichiro Oda
In previous chapter: Makino saw through the girl, and she noticed right away how fragile the small girl was. The girl recalled a piece of her memory of a terrible bloodshed. Makino was trying to comfort the girl, and to regain her calm. On the other hand, Ace was pissed off from the lack of food pacing around the forest. Luckily, they claimed a wild boar's life in the way home. But when they arrived, they heard a chilling scream from the house. They've never expected that.
Ch. 4: The Name
It was when they were in front of the house, that they heard a chilling scream piercing through the wind, coming from inside the house.
The first reflex that came into Ace and Luffy was to throw the dead boar aside and run into the house. Apparently it was Magra and Dogra that screamed from the doorstep to Dadan's room. Their eyes were wide and their jaws were low.
"What's wrong, Dogra, Magra?" Ace exclaimed warrily. Luffy was following close behind.
The said men were turning their heads toward the boys, their movement slow and their facial expressions were one of frantic. "O-o-ok-okash-shi-shira..." Dogra managed to stutter the word out.
Ace quickly shoved his way into the room, his dark eyes met another dark eyes. It was the girl they met in the forest before, and she was currently occupying the floor in the furthest end of the room, directly from where he stood. Her eyes were still one of fierce kind and her body language screamed awareness as she held out the same wood stick from the forest. But she had lost the gleam of anger in her expression.
Ace quirked an eyebrow. He hadn't expected that eyes to stare back at him.
"O-okashira has turned into a little girl. What happened? This is terrible. What're we gonna do?" Magra choked out.
"Is this the end of mountain bandits? What should we do now?" Dogra mumbled.
Ace was beyond annoyed. He looked back at them without moving from his spot. "Are you stupid? That girl is obviously not Dadan. Did you guys hurt your head just now?"
"But, but, but, Okashira...?" they said in unison.
Ace turned his head, eyes easily caught Dadan sprawling on the floor at the other side of the room, still deep in slumber. "She's right there. Didn't you see her when you came in at all?" he said, clearly annoyed.
Dogra and Magra took step forward, and when they saw their Boss sleeping soundly, they let out a collective sigh. Ace took the moment to stare back at the still glaring girl in front of him, his face changed ever so slightly to be more composed.
"You can let down that wood stick now. There's no harm with these bandits. They're just stupid," Ace said to the girl, which in turn made the girl loose some of her nerves. But she made sure to stay aware of her surrounding.
A blur passed Ace, reaching the girl in seconds and taking the liberty to crouch in front of her—it was Luffy. "Hi! I see Makino treated you. How's your feeling?" he said, grinning all the while.
The girl looked down, not intending to answer the question. But Luffy was persistant, so he asked again, "What's your name?"
The girl still refused to let out a single sound. Luffy kept on sprouting things while Ace watched the one-way conversation in silent. Dogra and Magra stood behind Ace, not knowing what to do.
"I see you are back, Ace. Took you long enough," Makino's voice lingered from behind them. They all turned toward her, including Luffy and the silent girl.
"Makino!"
"Makino-san!"
The woman smiled. "I had asked the other to take care of the boar you threw outside, Ace. If the meats ready, I can cook something special for you," she said.
"Ah, that's so nice of you, Makino-san," Magra shyly expressed his gratitude.
"Huh? Are the bandits up already?" Ace asked no one in particular. He glanced around the house, instead of finding bodies he found nothing but the floor. He had been wary when he heard the scream, so he ran inside without actually realizing that the floor was free of lying bandits.
"Makino-san gave us some breads earlier to fill our stomach. It wasn't enough actually, but she said that you were hunting for food so we wait for you to come," Dogra explained.
"So why is Dadan still sleeping? And why did you think that Dadan had turned into a kid?" Ace asked skeptically.
"Aa, that's because none of us is brave enough to wake up Boss if you haven't come back with food, so we just let her sleep. We don't know there's a girl inside. Who is she actually? I was surprised," Magra said, glancing to the girl's way that still having a one way conversation with the straw hat boy.
"That's my fault, really. I forgot to tell you that she's here. I'm sorry for the inconvenience, Dogra-san, Magra-san," Makino said.
Dogra and Magra was flustered, quickly said, "No, no, it's alright, Makino-san. You don't need to apologize at all. We're just a bit startled."
Ace only hummed in response to them. He turned to Makino, "Where were you? We thought you were staying here with that kid," he said.
"I went back to Foosha village to catch some clothes for the girl. She needs to change. Ah, she needs bath as well. Can we borrow the bathroom for a while?" she asked the two bandits.
"Yes, of course, Makino-san. You can use it whenever you like," Dogra said.
"Thank you." She walked into the room currently occupied by two kids and one sleeping bandit, slowly stepping closer to Luffy and the girl. "Luffy, the girl needs to take a bath for awhile. How about you get to know her later?"
"Ok, Makino! Shishi," Luffy answered cheerfully.
Makino smiled in return. Then she held the girl's hand and led her into the bathroom of the house.
Luffy was curious of the new kid around. Ever since they met in the forest, the girl never let out a sound let alone spoke. Why was that? Was she a mute? That might be the most possible case, but Luffy was sure he had heard her voices before. Like when she woke up in the forest, she voiced a small groan. And when Luffy approached her in Dadan's room before, he swore he had caught her voice in the air, almost inaudible but still.
Luffy had asked Ace why did the girl refuse to talk to them, but Ace's only answer was, "She's mute, most likely. Not that bothers me at all." Luffy was not satisfied.
He remembered Makino had said once that smile is necessary for everyone, that was why he loved smiling. Makino also said that his smile could make people around him happier. Luffy knew that because everytime Makino smiled, he was happy and his face would lit up in the same joy if not much more. The girl hadn't smile even once so far, so he decided that he would make her, since Ace had no interest at her at all.
To make the plan works he needed to approach the girl in every opportunity he had. So he went to the girl's side once she was done bathing, taking the liberty to sit beside her in the spacious room, being the talkative one. The girl wore a new outfit, a knee-length girl's pants and a plain blue shirt. Makino had smiled at them, saying that she would cook the meats for them and walked into the only proper kitchen in the back of the hut.
"Yo! You must feel better by now, right? Makino treats you really nice after all. She's kind all the time, so it's nice to be around her. The bandits are nice too! Well, I hate mountain bandits to be honest, but these people are not bad people, so they won't hurt you in anyway. I can make sure of that, I live here for... hm.. several months, I think! They told me to do some chores everyday, but I never do it! Chores are suck! It's better to go with Ace. Ace and I go to everywhere we want to, we know the forest very well, we go around the Gray Terminal, and sometimes we take short trips to the City to eat yummy food in the restaurant. We also go hunting, that's cool, right! We can beat crocodile, boar, big fish, bear, we even beat a very big tiger once! Oh, and we fight too! But we do it to train, so we can be stronger and stronger and stronger, then someday we will sail out to the sea as pirates! My dream is to be a Pirate King! And this hat is my treasure from a pirate, you know. I promise to give him back when I become a great pirate! Hey, do you have a dream?" Luffy beamed at the girl with wide curious eyes.
The girl blinked slowly, taking her time to digest the question. But then she turned her head, staring at the dull floor instead. Her face was solemn, thinking what to do with the boy's sudden question. Silent streched between them, one kid still staring at the other kid intently.
The girl suddenly stared back at Luffy, eyes determined with something. She grabbed Luffy by the wrist and led him outside. Once they were outside, the girl crouched down and etched lines into the ground by a wood stick—is that the same wood stick as before? Luffy didn't even realize it sooner.
After she was done, she straightened her body and looked at Luffy who was trying to decipher the lines scratched above the soil.
"Ma-mi-mi... mm..." Luffy mumbled, clearly having a hard time.
The girl however waited patiently for him. But then a voice jumped in, "Michella. That's Michella, right?"
The girl was startled and immediately turned her head toward the voice beside Luffy. The voice belonged to the older kid. It took several seconds of staring before she nodded slowly in acknowledgement.
"Cool! What're you gonna do by being one? I've never heard of it," Luffy exclaimed.
"Luffy, I don't think that's an occupation. It's her name, if I guess right," he raised one eyebrow to the girl, which he received a positive nod from her.
"Is that so? That's a nice name! Oh, I know! You should stay with us! Shishishishi," Luffy proclaimed, really happy to get to know the girl's name.
"That won't do, Luffy. She can't stay with us," Ace interjected.
"Hahh? Whyyy? It will be fun! We can teach her to fight! Right, Malala?" Luffy said, not wanting to lose, oblivious to the fact that he had mistaken the girl's name.
"But, Luffy. She... she... aaa.. You know what? I don't really care. You can stay wherever you want," Ace said, deliberately leaving the topic before it grew into a debate.
"What do you say, Malala? You'll like it here! There are many tasty animals in the forest, you will love the taste! Shishi," Luffy said in excitement.
The girl was bewildered. Someone was offering her to stay around, just because it would be fun. It was usually because she could be ordered for whatever purpose. But Luffy was really different. He actually proposed to befriend her in the spot. And the girl was thoroughly perplexed. She didn't even have the time to think of a response to the misspelling of her name. Not that she could give a response outright anyway.
"Sorry to disturb your time, kids, but breakfast is ready," Makino glanced in their way from the doorstep. Three pairs of black eyes turned to face her, one with loud joyful exclamation, one with a slight lit up of relief, and one with unreadable expression. She waited them to follow her suit into the dining room, which is the same room where they did most of the bandits' activities.
Above the floor were many kinds of food being served, with the meats as the main course. Unfortunately their only table used for special occasion to put all the plates was broken, so they put the plates on the floor. All bandits were gathering around the dishes, ready to jump in anytime soon as they were drooling already. But when they saw Makino walked back with the boys, they composed themselves to act cool, which actually was amusing to see how hard they tried.
Luffy grabbed Michella's wrist, sitting himself beside Makino and signaling for her to sit next to him, which she complied easily. Meanwhile Ace took a seat at the other side of Makino. Everybody was present in the moment, even Dadan already sat at the end of the line.
"Since everybody's here, you may eat now. Have a breakfast, everyone!" Makino said, smiling at the bandits' demeanor around her. It was amusing how they held themselves and even went as far as to be abnormally polite.
Once the signal had been given, all people present save for Makino and Michella, jumped in to devour the very tempting late breakfast they rarely had. Usually it was always the average cooked meats. They often found themselves missing Makino's meals when she was away. Now they had the said woman cooked for them, they gladly ate everything on sight.
Michella was mildly surprise, but it wasn't really long when a hand nudged her in the shoulder. She turned her head to see Makino smiling down at her and said, "If you don't eat now, you won't get any food later, you should notice by now."
Truth to be told, with the pace of food swallowed down, at this rate the food would be swept clean in just several minutes ahead. So she took the advice in, grab just enough food for herself to eat in silent. She wanted to eat more actually, but she couldn't with these people around her. She still felt worry being in crowd.
"Wahhh, I'm full, I'm full! Makino's foods are the best!" Luffy proclaimed, resting in the floor with full round stomach. The other bandits were sighing in content.
"Thanks, Luffy. All of you deserve a decent food once in awhile," Makino replied.
"Hey, hey, Makino. What do you think if Malala stay with us here? Don't you agree it will be fun? Right, Makino?" Luffy voiced his thought from earlier.
"Hm? Who is Malala, Luffy?" Makino asked.
Ace chirped in from where he was laying, "It's Michella, that girl's name."
"Yup!" Luffy nodded enthusiastically.
"Ahh, so it's Michella? What a pretty name. Do you live in the city?" Makino asked the girl. She put aside her curiosity as to how the boys got the girl's name in the first place.
The girl gave a shake of the head to express that she didn't.
"What about your family, then?" Makino carefully asked again.
Michella went tense at the mention of family, and she slowly shook her head. Makino had guessed so, considering the girl's actions so far.
"Well, what do you think, Dadan-san?" on the other hand Dadan was currently busy clearing her teeth with a toothpick. When her name was mentioned by none other than Makino, she quickly stopped and threw the toothpick away.
"Ah, aa..., what was it again, Makino? I'm sorry I didn't pay attention," Dadan quickly said.
"It's not a big deal, Dadan-san. You see, this girl over here is Michella. Ace and Luffy found her in the forest this morning and I brought her here. Apparently she's alone and she's not from here. Luffy seemed eager to have the girl stay here, but it's your place to decide. If you can't take her in, then I will take care of her," Makino explained.
"Ahh, so there's a new kid around, huh? Uhh, well, as long as you do your chores and be a good kid unlike the boys, you may stay. But are you sure to leave her, Makino? It's rough living in this mountain surrounded by thick forest. It's likely better you bring her to the village, right? It's safer there," Dadan said. So far the little girl didn't break out a mess, and she seemed to be the quite type, so maybe Dadan could handle her, but still, two brats were enough for a lifetime.
"Don't wanna! Malala is my friend! I can protect her, and we can teach her to fight on her own. So it's fine for her to stay!" Luffy said, stubbornly forcing his will while struggling to get up on his feet.
Makino chuckled, "Will you really protect her, Luffy?"
"Of course I will! I'm a man after all!" he said while he stood funnily with his round stomach.
"Will you promise me then?"
"I promise I'll protect her!"
"What about you, Michella? Will you be fine here?" all eyes turned to the girl.
She blinked, didn't expect someone to ask her opinion. She nodded in affirmative. Living in a hut would help her a lot by this point. She grew tired of sleeping on vacant valleys already.
"It's final then. You will stay here for as long as you want. I'll spare you some clothes to wear, maybe I can bring them tomorrow. You can ask Luffy where to find me if you ever need me. But you should always be careful in this forest, okay? Luffy said he will protect you, though," Makino said, smiling at the quiet girl. Her face was expressionless and eerily calm, and if she thought of something, Makino couldn't find out what.
"Yatta! Yatta! Malala is staying! Yeay!" pure delight radiated from the rubber boy.
Ace didn't know what to expect from the newcomer. Hopefully she was not some kind of charm to bad luck. But life hated him, so he chose not to care anyway.
HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE~!
Well, at least in my country, it's 3 hours past 2015, so yeah, HAPPY NEW YEAR~
Here's the chapter 4 of TO, it's one of the longest chapter, nearly 3k words O.o
I hope you like it~ Though the chapter is particularly light, there are LOTS OF HINTS in this chapter. The barest of hints everywhere especially in this chapter, you have to squint to find them. Feel free to tell me if you catch some hints~ Aa, feel free to comment anything in this work, guys, I don't know what you think about this story if you just keep it in mind. One or two words doesn't hurt, right? *wink*
By the way, there's a solid reason about the nickname I choose there. Anyone wants to guess it?
Anyway people, since it's new year and Ace birthday as well, I want to throw you a small present. I'M POSTING A ONESHOT! Check it out, guys! You know it's about who *grin*
Abundance of thanks for people who reads/follows/favs TO, you guys graced smiles to my life! *throw love confetti*
That's all for now~
Dadah, fellas~!
01/01/2016
-Mei Evelyn