Sorry that I haven't updated in a while. I am almost failing three classes and I had to stop writing for a while to study. Time for review.
LilyXJames: Glad you like it. And I would have tried to update sooner but… just read above.
ON WITH THE STORY!!
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Ace sighed as he walked down to the others where they were standing on the deck. Nami was searching the skies, trying to find out what had happened to the storm, Luffy was looking alone with awe, and Zoro and Sanji didn't really care.
"Hey guys!" Ace called from the steps. They all looked over at him. "Someone you might be wanting to see is awake." he said. They others opened their mouths to ask what he meant when the door burst open and Chopper came running out.
"Where is my patient?" he frantically asked. Luffy was about to ask why his patient would be missing but Ace cut him off.
"Try the kitchen." Ace offered. Chopper nodded and was gone in a flash. The others immediately crowded around him, all asking questions at once.
"When did she wake up?" Nami asked.
"She's in the kitchen? Why?" Zoro absently asked.
"She's in my kitchen?" Sanji asked, with hearts in his eyes.
"COOL! SHE'S AWAKE!" Luffy shouted, silencing all of them. They all stared at him before bursting out laughing.
"Yeah, Luf. She's awake. Just don't go and scare her." he added as Luffy got ready to run into the kitchen. Ace grabbed his collar just in time. "No rocketing into the kitchen. Chopper is giving her a check up." Luffy shook his head, not wanting to listen. "Luffy." Ace said, in a warning tone. Luffy sighed and nodded. Nami smiled at them. It was good to see the brothers together.
"Hey. You're going to stay out here until Chopper says we can come in." Nami said. Sanji was about to protest but Nami cut him off. "I'm the only girl here. No boys except for Chopper. Got that?" she said in a threatening voice. The boys gulped and nodded. No one wanted to mess with an angry Nami. "Good." she happily said and she turned and walked into the kitchen.
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Cori gasped in pain as the man helped her sit in one of the chairs.
"I'll be back in a bit." he kindly said. Cori nodded and the man left her alone in the ship's kitchen.
"How did I get here?" she asked. She meant the how did she get on the ship, of course. Let see. The pirates came, me and Saren fought, I lost control when she insulted me, big and ugly showed up and hurt me, she reached down and felt the bandages that were around her middle, Blondie got me out of there, I collapsed in pain, fainted, then the next thing I knew, I was on this ship. She then realized that she could feel her bandages. Her eyes widened and she looked down, afraid of what she would see. She had thought that her shirt had been cut up by the wind and big and ugly. She had hoped that it was salvageable. I guess it wasn't. she thought as she saw that she had come up with only a bra on. She glanced around and saw a very dirty table cloth on the floor. Better than nothing. She thought as she painfully wrapped it around herself. Just as she sat back down, Chopper burst through the door.
"Here you are. Are you alright? Does your wound hurt? Is it bleeding again? Do you feel alright? You don't feel sick do you? Answer me! Why aren't you answering? Can you talk?" he frantically said. Cori blinked and slowly repeated all of what he had just said in her mind before answering.
"Yeah, I'm in here. Yes. A bit when I move. Not that I know of. A little dizzy. I'm not sick. You were going to fast for me to answer, and yes, I can talk." she said. "Could I have a shirt?" she asked. Chopper slowly took her answers and paired them up with each question. He looked at her and realized that she had the dirty table cloth wrapped around her.
"Yeah. I'll be back in a flash." he hurriedly said as he ran out of the room. He ran into the men's cabin and thought for a minute. He didn't want her to hurt her wounds any more than she already had so he grabbed one of Sanji's big dress shirts that he always wears. ( Not that Sanji is big or anything. Its just that one of his shirt would be big on Cori). Chopper ran back into the kitchen and handed her the shirt. He turned around while she pulled it on.
"You can turn around now." she said. Chopper had to bite his tongue to keep from laughing. The shirt was way too big on her and the sleeves were to long. She had rolled them up to where Sanji's elbows would come to and they were still a little too long for her arms. "What is your place on the ship?" she asked. He smacked himself for not telling her sooner.
"I'm the doctor. My names Chopper." he said. She smiled at him.
"Let me guess. You ate a human human fruit (not sure if that's what its called XD)." she said. By the way his mouth was hanging open and the astonished look on his face, Cori guessed that she had been right. He opened his mouth to say something just as Nami came in.
"Hey Cori, how….. Chopper, what do you have her wearing?" Nami asked when she saw what Cori was wearing. Chopper looked down. He could be shy at times.
"One of Sanji's shirts. I didn't want her wearing a shirt that could press against her wounds." he explained. She was about to yell at him, saying that girls shouldn't wear the guys clothing, when Cori cut her off.
"Its fine. I always have worn really loose shirts, anyway." she shrugged, telling Nami that it was no big deal.
"Okay. By the way, if you don't remember, I'm Nami, the ship's navigator." she said. Cori nodded.
"I remembered your name and….well, that's all you told me." Cori reminded her. Nami smiled and was about to speak when she was cut off by a yell and a loud thud on the kitchen door. Nami reached over and pulled the door open. Luffy was on it. Literally.
"Luffy, I'll make you food just as soon as I can get into the kitchen." Sanji's irritated voice said from on the deck. Luffy peeled himself off the door and jumped over the railing.
"Sorry." he sheepishly said. Nami sighed.
"Sanji! You can come cook now!" Nami yelled down. Sanji came running up the stairs, right to Nami's side.
"Anything for you, my Nami-swan." he said with hearts in his eyes. Nami guessed that this would be a good time to ask about the shirt.
"Sanji, I have a favor to ask." Nami said.
"Of course." he immediately agreed, not caring what he was agreeing to.
"Chopper borrowed one of your shirts for our guest. Is that alright?" she asked, hoping that he would mind. He didn't.
"Of course she can borrow it. Anything for a lady." he was about to go faun over her next but Nami grabbed his arm.
"No scaring our guest, got that?" she asked him and he agreed. She let him go past her and into the kitchen, where Cori was standing next to the door. He looked around for her but when he didn't see her, he was puzzled. It was then that Cori decided to show herself. She walked up to Sanji and tapped him on the shoulder, then she ducked to one side. He turned around, looking for whoever had touched him, and when he saw no one, he turned to walk to the stove. While his back had been turned, Cori and went and stood at his back, in front of the stove. He jumped when he came face to face with her. He quickly stepped back and accidentally tripped over a poorly placed mop bucket and went out the door backwards. He grabbed the rail and steadied himself. He stared into the kitchen at Cori.
"ARE YOU ALRIGHT, SANJI?" Luffy yelled up from the deck. Zoro and Ace were also looking up at him. 'GUM GUM ROCKET!" he shouted as he stretched his arms and went rocketing into the kitchen. Sanji ducked just in time. Cori jumped over him as he went rocketing down into the lowest level of his ship. "Owwwww." he moaned. Sanji jumped up and ran into the kitchen. He came in just as Cori came back down to the floor.
"Are all of you alright?" he asked the girls, Chopper ran over to Cori and slightly lifted her borrowed shirt to check her bandages. He nodded his head and dropped her shirt. By now, Luffy had gotten back up the stairs.
"Hey! You really are awake! Why are you wearing Sanji's shirt?" he asked. Sanji wouldn't have noticed if Luffy hadn't pointed it out. The only problem was that the shirt was too big for her and the sleeve's had to be rolled up.
"You look good in my shirt though," Sanji said as he walked over to her. He grabbed her hand and kissed it. "I'm Sanji, the chef. And you are?" she smiled.
"Why don't I introduce myself when the rest of the crew is here. Then I won't have to tell my story a million times over." she smiled, making Sanji swoon and get hearts in his eyes. He nodded and yelled out the door.
"HEY GUYS! GET YOUR BUTTS IN HERE!" he yelled and soon, every one was in the kitchen. They were all staring at Cori.
"Yo. If didn't hear it in the shop, my name's Cori. I know some of you 'cause ya already told me your names but others, I have no clue about." she said and Sanji was at her side in a minute.
"The black haired guy with no shirt on is Ace, the one with the long nose is Usopp, the one with the swords is the ever lazy Zoro, and the hyper kid with the rubber powers is Luffy, the captain." Sanji told her. She nodded.
"Nice to meetcha. By the way, thanks for getting me out of there and helping me." she sweetly said.
"Why was that man after you?" Zoro asked. Cori sadly sighed and looked at her feet. Sanji saw that and hit Zoro on the head. "What was that for?" he cried.
"Don't make a girl sad. Why I outa…." he started to say but Cori cut him off.
"Quiet. Let me finish, alright?" she harshly said. Sanji got quiet immediately. "A few years ago, about ten to be exact, I was in an accident. That's how I got this scar." she pointed to the scar on her eye. "I don't really remember all the details but I think that somehow I was caught in a storm. I woke on a ship run by the man that was after me. His name is Lurther. He had rescued me from the ocean,. He said that I was clinging to a large branch fir dear life. After that, he taught me his way of making a living. By raiding villages that always had pirates in them. He taught me that the only thing that mattered was getting the pirates and nothing else. Everywhere he went, people feared him. One day, five years after he had found me, we did a raid on a town, just like always. I went t into a house and found a hurt man, his pregnant wife, and his three young kids. The hurt man was the man that we were after. His wife and kids begged me to spare him, to tell the others that he wasn't here. That somehow brought back a rush of memories. I made my choice and I lied to Lurther. Somehow he found out and I was brought before him. He yelled at me, stuff that I would never want to repeat, and then he, he , he….." Cori couldn't stand it any longer. She broke down into tears. Nami was by her side in a flash.
"Are you alright?" Nami asked, concerned. Cori nodded her head.
"I need to finish this story, no matter how much it hurts." she took a deep breath and continued. "He pushed me on his bed and….well, I'm not going to tell much more of that. Anywho, he threw me overboard. I couldn't swim and so I would have drowned. Thankfully, a ship headed to Armia town found me in time and saved me. I've been there ever since. I figured that he wouldn't be able to find me there but I guess I was wrong." she ended, spitting out the last part angrily. Nami put her arm around Cori's shoulder.
"I have a question. What was with the wind back at the restaurant?" Ace asked. Cori smiled.
"I'm a fruit user. I have the power of the Kaze kaze fruit. It gives me wind powers and control over it." she explained.
"Cool. I have a….." Ace started to say but he had another narcolepsy attack. The others sighed. Nami turned to Cori and was about to explain.
"He has…." she started to say but Cori cut her off.
"Narcolepsy. I know. I have it too. Thankfully its not too bad." she said. They all stared at her.
"Really?" Luffy asked. Cori nodded her head.
"Yeah. If you guys see me put my hand to my head and leave it there, it probably means that its kicking in. Most of the time I stay awake, though." she explained. Ace chose then to wake up.
"….a fruit power too." he said, finishing his sentence. Cori smiled.
"Cool. Which one?" she asked.
" The Flame Flame Fruit. I can turn my body into a living flame." he told her. She nodded and pointed towards Luffy. "His fruit power is the gum gum fruit. His whole body is rubber."
"Neat." she said. She smiled at all of them. They were being so nice to her. Maybe I should tell them the rest of the story. She got lost in thought and didn't even hear Sanji say that the food was done. Chopper had told him what she could eat and he had made some just for her.
"Here you go." Sanji said as he put the plate down in front of her. She shook her head and looked up at him.
"Huh?" she said. Sanji smiled at her.
"I said that here's some food for you." he said. Cori sweetly smiled at him and he got hearts in his eyes.
"Thank you!" she said before digging in. Soon, everyone was done and they went out to do what they do every day, leaving Cori sitting there. Sanji came over to her.
"Want a tour of the ship?" he asked and he held out a hand to help her up. She smiled and nodded. She took his hand and let him show her around.
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Cori sighed as she turned over on the bed she had been given. She was given a place in the girls cabin with Nami. She knew that it was well past two in the morning but she couldn't sleep. Her hidden memories, the ones that she wanted to forget, were coming back and haunting her dreams. She turned over again and stared out at the sea, sparkling with moonlight on its waves. It was then that she remembered the package that Mike had given her, Chopper had given it to her earlier but she hadn't had the time to open it yet. She reached onto the table next to her and pulled it out. It was a long and skinny package. She pulled the paper off of it and gasped.
It was a brand new, finely crafted, wooden flute with a painted on cherry blossom design on the edge. She saw a note sticking our of the end of it and she pulled it out and started to read.
Dear Cori,
Cori, I always knew that you would leave this island someday. Your home is on the sea and that is where you belong. When you first came, I took you in and found out about your wind powers and something else. You are a wonderful musician. I bought this flute for you, to give to you on the day that you left. You were like a daughter to me and for that, I thank you. May the wind and the sea always be at your back, Cori.
From,
Mike
Cori smiled and looked at the flute. It must have been very expensive. She sighed and silently crept out of the cabin and onto the deck. Once on deck, she immediately went to the figure head, She climbed onto it and just stood there. She sighed and lifted the flute to her mouth. She took a deep breath and blew.
The song was a sad low song that started out soft but got louder and higher at the end. Cori had learned it from her mother before the storm.
She closed her eyes and let her memories of home come back. She sadly smiled and let her tears fall, relieving her of many pains that she had bottled up.
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Ace shot up in the hammock that he was sleeping in. It had been the dream again (see earlier chapters). He rubbed his eyes and swung his legs over the side of the hammock. He stood up and quietly walked out towards the deck. He was about to push open the door when he heard music from the deck. He quietly pushed the door open a crack and his eyes widened when he saw who was playing. It was Cori. He also recognized the song that she was playing. It was a lullaby that his mother had used to sing. He silently walked out onto the deck and up to the figure head without her hearing him. He saw that she was crying. Soon, she lowered the flute and stared out at the sea.
"That was beautiful." Ace said, startling Cori. She slowly turned around and stared at him.
"You….You heard me?" She stammered out. He nodded. "I didn't think that anyone else was awake." she said as she jumped down from the figure head. Unfortunately, she tripped. She gasped and braced herself for impact on the wood but it never came. She opened her eyes, not even knowing that she had closed them, and saw that she was being held above the ground. She looked up and saw that Ace had stopped her from falling.
"You're clumsy. You okay?" He said as he helped her up. She nodded.
"Did I wake you up?" she asked. He shook his head no. "Then why are you awake?" he sighed and walked over to the mast. He climbed up the rope ladder and into the lookout. Cori followed. She got up there just as he sat down. "Are you going to answer my question?" she asked as she jumped into the basket. He glanced over at her before starting to stare out at the sea. He sighed after a while.
"I had a nightmare." he quietly said. Cori smiled at the fact that he told her that.
"Why don/'t you tell me about it?" she said. He looked over at her with a questioning look. "I was told that it helps." she said with a shrug. "Ya don't have to tell me if ya don't want to." She said and she fell silent. Ace sighed.
"It was about my sister. She was killed during a storm. She was hit by a branch while we were trying to get home. She was swept out to sea and we didn't even find her body. The dream is about all of my memories of her up until her death. I see it happen but then I see her crying and yelling that I didn't save her. I run after her but I can never get to her in time. It then that I always wake up." he sadly said. He felt something on his face and found that he was crying.
Cori had been silent during his whole story. She saw him start crying. She reached over and put her arms around him. He leaned into her shoulder and cried his eyes out. "Just cry. Just cry." Cori said. Soon he fell silent but he didn't pull away. "No matter what happens you can always pull through, no matter how hard it is or how much it hurts, you can do it." he gasped at this.
"How did you know that? That's what my sis told me, years ago." he said with an astonished look on his face. Cori sadly smiled.
"Your sis must have been a smart person then. And did you ever consider the possibility that your sister could have survived?" she said with a smile. He gave her a questioning look.
"What do you mean?" he asked, not understanding what she meant. She smiled.
"She could have grabbed onto the branch and floated on it until someone picked her up in a ship." she said, hoping that he would get what she was saying. He thought about what she said for a minute and his eyes widened. He looked over at her, trying to say something but he found that his voice was gone. She smiled.
"No way." he managed to croak out. She smiled at him and laughed a little.
"Yeah. I did survive. Took you long enough." she said with a roll of her eyes. "I knew it was you from the minute that I saw you."
"Cori… I can't believe it." he said. He reached over and hugged her, tears falling again. But this time, his tears weren't sad. They were tears of joy.