Hi again! It's me, Tatertwig45! Welcome to chapter 4 of An One Piece Cinderella! So you think you have met all of the characters, but you will be introduced to the final one in this chapter. Read and review!

Note: I do not own One Piece or its characters. They all belong to Eiichiro Oda. (Darn it!)

One Piece Cinderella

Ch 4

Down in the dungeons, chained to a gray stone wall with whip marks on his back, Luffy was trying not to wince in pain because of the lashings he had received. He had drawn a little bit of blood from his lip as he sat, looking out of the bars at the blank wall that was on the other side. He was becoming so bored that he began to count the white grout in between the bricks on the wall.

"Twenty-thousand-five-hundred-and-sixty-three….twenty-thousand-five-hundred-and-sixty-four…twenty-thousand-five-hundred-and-sixty-five…"

Just then he heard voices from upstairs and a sudden click of heels as the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs, someone opening the door then closing it. Zolo stood at the top of the stairs leading down into the dungeon with Captain Morgan beside him. On Zolo's right stood another large muscular man smoking a large cigar and had white hair standing straight in the air. Every time the man's mouth moved, a large puff of smoke came from the cigar and filled the air.

Zolo stepped downstairs with the man and Morgan following him like faithful dogs. As Zolo stood in front of Luffy's cell, he gave a sharp look to Morgan, who went behind him and untied his bandanna, took it off, and laid it carefully on a black-tasseled red pillow with a black 'Z' in the middle of it.

Zolo closed his eyes and let out a sigh. "Ahh that's much better. It was starting to get very unpleasant."

Glancing up at Zolo, Luffy saw that underneath the bandanna his step-father's hair was a light green and short. He also had pirate-like earrings in both ears. The most peculiar thing though was that his skin tone was tan, which Luffy hadn't noticed until now, not that he liked looking at Zolo anyway.

There was a sudden pain on his back as the cuts stung him every time he breathed. Morgan had done his work well and thorough. If the guard had whipped him some more, muscle and tendons would be showing and his back would look like it had gone through a shredder, as if it already didn't. Luffy's agonizing movement made Zolo smile.

"I believe that I will commend my captain for excellent work on punishing the boy. However…" the swordsman lord turned to the iron-jawed Morgan and glared. "He needs to not only learn what he gets for defying me and doing what he did to Sanji, but also how to be more like a servant and less what he thinks he should be." Zolo paused and looked at Luffy smugly. "Or what he used to be. I expect his manner towards me and my sons to be better this time. Do you think you will be able to do it, Captain?" he spat the last word as Captain Morgan cringed under his fierce look with widened eyes. "Or will you fail me once again like you have in the past?"

"I will not fail you My Lord. I will make sure that the boy learns his lesson." The quivering captain said as he bowed.

This however did not seem to appease Zolo as he walked past Morgan, who was on the ground, and stood while the other captain went behind him and put the bandanna around his head. "I want not a word out of him while I am having my meeting with the king. Which means you will stay down here and keep the boy silent. Do I make myself clear?" he asked as he glared more fiercely at his idiot of a captain.

The captain's quivering turned to shaking as he bowed again. "Yes My Lord, c-crystal clear-r."

Zolo smirked at his captain fear, then turned and went back up to the interior of the castle. As he was going up the stairs, he turned and looked down at Luffy, then to Morgan, whose face was already ashen.

"Remember." Zolo said low as he punctuated the words to make his point. "Not. A. Word."

Captain Morgan only gasped because he was already speechless with fear.

As the door shut behind his lord and his fellow captain, his face went back into its regular position, with his mouth closing with a clang from the metal on his chin. Furiously, he turned to look at Luffy in a glare, suddenly shooting his arm through Luffy's cell, that his ax-hand was almost touching the boy's neck. Luffy's eyes widened as he saw Morgan come closer, so close that he could smell the cigar smoke. Beads of sweat started dripping from his face as the ax had almost gotten close to decapitating him.

"Listen brat." Morgan growled. "If you embarrass me like what you did, you will regret the day that you were ever born. And I can easily make sure of that, now can't I?"

Shaking with fear as the weapon was under his chin, Luffy nodded, then sighed to himself.

"This is going to be a long night."

The moon shone up in the sky as it illuminated a red-and-white carriage rolling down the road. It stopped a little and turned onto a stone drive to the front doors of Zolo's castle. He coachman came down from the seat in the front of the carriage and opened the door, letting Ussop out first, then Shanks with a soldier behind them. They walked up to the door, but before they could knock upon it, the doors opened by two servants, with another bowing and leading them into a black and red room with two red couches and two black chairs side by side, but one was raised on a small platform so that it was higher than the other. Zolo was sitting in the one on the platform with one leg crossed over the other, while the captain, who was called Captain Smoker was in the one beside him.

Two servants went up behind Shanks and Ussop and removed their coats and hats while another two put chairs behind them. The king and the duke sat down, with Ussop suddenly falling. He looked down and saw that he was forced to sit on a tiny stool that apparently came from the kitchen. Shanks let out a little chuckle at his friend while Ussop glared at him, but then chuckled too. Soon their chuckles became bursts of laughter, but were stopped by Zolo clearing his throat.

"I hate to interrupt such…revelry, but we do have a meeting of topics to discuss, don't we?"

This made Shanks stop laughing and nodded, "Yes we do. I apologize for mine and my duke's behavior."

Narrowing his eyes, Zolo took a sip from his crystal wine glass before speaking. "Now, the primary topic is your payment to me. Do you have it?"

Shanks was handed a glass of wine, which he kindly denied and was brought one of water. He took a sip of it, and Ussop was handed a glass of wine, which he too, took a sip.

"Well Zolo…" Shanks began before being cut off by Zolo clearing his throat in a commanding tone.

"I-I mean, My Lord. I wanted to talk about that. I do not have it, but I think that I shouldn't have to pay you just because you are a lord and I am higher than you in status because I am king. No disrespect to you but I think I should receive payment from you."

Just as he said those words, Shanks immediately thought that he should have taken his statement back. He looked at Zolo to see his reaction to his courageous statement, but Zolo just snickered just a little as he shook his head in disbelief at the king's words.

"My dear King Shanks, have you forgotten what treaty was made all those years ago? Are you really that ignorant of the pact?" Zolo asked.

"Let me remind you that you that you signed a contract saying that you would be king when I was lord over your realm, and I would be a lord. But…you would pay tribute to me every month or the treaty was null and void. I would take over and you, your duke, and your daughter would become my servants forever. Now, I do think I remember that now don't I? For I do not make my threats blindly, as I have the forces and soldiers backing them up. Unlike you who maybe has only a few hundred men, my men number in the thousands and tens of thousands. Do you understand my point?"

Shanks considered all that Zolo said and bowed his head in defeat. "Yes of course. I understand" then he thought of another point. "But I think…" but he was stopped by Zolo who glared at him.

"You think? I do not care what you think! You dare to disobey the treaty? I would think that a man such as you would have more respect than that!"

"I-I do…my lord." Shank's answered as shame spread across his face, making it as red as his hair.

Zolo smiled in amusement. Shanks was not a king, but rather a peasant in kingly robes and a crown. Some day he would fall and Zolo would take his kingdom, daughter, and servants and add them to his wealth. Someday that day would come, but not now. He would wait until that time was right to take over.

Meanwhile as Zolo and Shanks were talking, Helmeppo was outside the door of the parlor, listening. Even though he was still in trouble with his father, he still liked to listen to Zolo's conversations with Shanks. If he was caught…well, he didn't want to think about that right now.

"But…well…" the fight was out of Shanks as he slumped down in defeat. There was no clear answer since Zolo had brought Nami into the conversation. "I guess I shall pay the amount that I owe you."

As Zolo heard the exhausted king's words, he smirked as his convincing had finally gotten through at last. "Excellent, Shanks. Do not worry about your daughter and servants. I will not attack unless you do this to me again. Now I believe that you have a daughter that is waiting for you at home, is that right?"

Shanks nodded and bowed reluctantly. He would have said something to this false lord, but he did not want to argue with a man who could do anything that he pleased and have no one stop him. He wanted to stop Zolo, but if that meant putting Nami in danger, then it was better to leave it as it was. Shanks was hopeful that soon someone would stand up to the likes of Zolo and put an end to his cruel tyranny, and the world would be a better place, safe from tyrants and people of that disposition. It would be brighter, mark his words, so much brighter.

As he turned to go, he glanced down at Ussop, who had all but been ignored, and saw him glaring furiously at Zolo, who was giving him a glare also.

"Will you tell your monkey-duke to behave as his title allows and not like some child?" Zolo asked as he was still smirking. "It really is quite embarrassing. But then again, your whole court is nothing but fools who do not have any discipline whatsoever! Your soft heart is the cause of that! Now my court is nothing compared to yours, because I would never allow my servants to behave in such a manner. You do though."

Shanks scowled, but didn't retaliate. He was too wise for that. Instead he went behind Ussop and tapped him on the shoulder. "Ussop?"

Ussop didn't answer but kept his eyes on Zolo.

"Ussop?"

No answer.

Shanks had had about enough of this foolishness, and he didn't want Zolo to think anymore less of him that he already did. "USSOP!"

This got the duke's attention as he flew straight up in the air and landed in Captain Smokers lap. At first he didn't know where he was, but then he saw the furious eyes of Smoker and went instantly pale. Smiling, he patted Smoker's face, took his cigar and smoked some of it, put it back in the Captain's mouth, patted his face again, the took off running out the door, slamming Helmeppo into the wall and knocking a whole group of servants over like they were bowling pins.

Shanks just chuckled at his friend's tomfoolery, but Zolo was less than amused. The king saw that the swordsman had about enough of him and followed Ussop out the door, got in the carriage, and drove away from the castle. When the king had left, Zolo sat for just a few minutes, smiling and shaking his head wearily. His ears suddenly picked up a sound outside the door and, at the snap of his fingers, the door opened to reveal Helmeppo being held up by his shirt collar by a guard.

Helmeppo smiled up hopefully at his father, but only received a glare, which made his face drop. "Take him up to his room." Zolo ordered.

Helmeppo's frown got even deeper as felt himself being taken upstairs. After he was seen no more, Zolo took a sip of wine, and then with two guards following him, went up to his room for the night.

Idiot boy!

Yay! Chapter 4 is finally done! Now that you have seen how Shanks is treated by Zolo, I wonder what will happen in the morning. The only hint I can give about the next chapter is that Nami is in it. Review! See you in the next chapter!

~Tatertwig45