Trouble Wears Yellow

Head pounding from his night of restless sleep, Law cupped his hands under the water before splashing it upon his face. The cool water ran down his hot skin, cooling it but doing nothing for his still throbbing head. Sighing he shut off the water, dried his face, and left his bathroom. Grabbing his sword from the foot of his bed he left his room and headed upstairs to the medical bay. The sub was quiet leading him to believe his crew was either on the lower levels or out on the deck already. They were to be arriving at Brazen Island before lunch. And they were all ready to get off the sub for a while.

Reaching the main floor some of his crew's voices came in through the open door. He didn't pause to listen in on what they were saying. He continued on up the stairs to the medical bay. Turning into the first exam room, he went right to the medical cabinet. Opening it, he pulled out a bottle and popped the top off. Pouring four white pills into the palm of his hand, he placed the bottle back where it belonged before closing the cabinet. He filled himself a glass of water before downing the pills. Done in the medical bay he headed back downstairs and out onto the deck. He leaned against the sub wall while watching the horizon for the island to come into view.

Twenty minutes later the dark mass of the island finally reached them. He watched it come into focus the closer they got. The darkness faded away to white buildings, green leaves, and brown wood from ships. The sub pulled into the harbor. The anchor dropped, the crew cheered.

"Finally!" Shachi said stretching his arms out as far as they would go. "I can wait for some rest and recreation."

"You're going to get rest while sleeping with all the women here?" Conner said.

"Well, I'm not a machine." Shachi smirked. "We all have to rest sometime. Besides you've slept with more women than I have."

"I have not," Conner said.

"Must you two always argue over who's slept with the most women?"

Shachi and Conner looked back at another crewmate.

"Well, that was a fast trip. Did you just pull the sub into the harbor, Archer?" Conner asked.

"I'm an expert on piloting the sub, unlike you buffoons," Archer said. "Docking takes me no time at all."

"What did you call us?!" Shachi and Conner demanded.

Law tuned out his crew's voices. His eyes remained locked onto the island before them. He could tell, somehow, that something was going to happen here. There was an unexplainable tension around his body. He knew it was more than just restlessness.

"You're really quiet today, Captain," Penguin said, filtering into the captain's ears. "Anything wrong?"

"No, nothing," Law said. "Just ready to spend some time on land."

"How long are we going to stay here?" Penguin asked.

"Three or four days," Law said. "Unless something else comes up to change that. Let's get going. We need to get rooms."

"Right!" the crew cheered before they started their descent down the ladder.

Law, however, remained in place. His eyes wouldn't leave the island. It took a sharp call of a seagull to snap him out of his trance. Walking over to the ladder he found that one of his crew had remained on the deck. Bepo was staring into the town like he had been a few seconds ago. "Bepo?"

The bear didn't answer. Law climbed down to his navigator. Bepo's black nose was twitching, sniffing the air, while his black eyes held confusion.

"Bepo, what is it?" Law asked.

"I'm not sure," Bepo said. "Nature moved."

"What?" Law asked.

"I know it sounds weird, but I feel like nature is moving inside of the town," Bepo said.

"I think you need this break more than I do," Law said.

"Maybe you're right," Bepo said.

"Let's go." Law led the way across the dock. Soon the wooden dock gave way to the dirt path leading into the town. He scanned his eyes over the people and buildings. Nothing looked out of the normal but something still felt off about this place. Peaking at his navigator, he saw that Bepo was still sniffing the air and looking around curiously.

"Captain!" Shachi called. "This place has plenty of open rooms!"

Law looked up to see his crew had gathered outside of a hotel. They waited for him before entering into the building. He walked over to the check in counter, instantly getting a flirtatious giggle from the young woman behind it.

"How many nights, sir?" She fluttered her eyelashes at him.

"Four." Law scribbled his name down in the book before grabbing the keys off the counter, ignoring her flirtation looks.

"Do let me know if you need anything," the young woman said.

Law turned his back to her. It was far too easy for him to know what she really wanted. But he wasn't interested in pointless one nightstands. Sleeping with women always brought too much trouble to a man. He had seen it many times in his crew. Several women would grow attached to the one they slept with and some caused a big scene when it was time for them to leave the island. Some even claimed they had gotten pregnant. But Law knew they were lying. It took more than a day or two for a sperm to fertilize a woman's egg.

Over all it was a waste of time. Plus, children of pirates were always left with the burden of their parents' choices. Something he wasn't interested in putting on a child. Pushing the thoughts aside, he handed out the keys to his crew before entering into his room. A normal hotel room laid out before him. Giving it a quick look over he turned and left the hotel. He knew his crew wouldn't waste their sub free time. And he wasn't going to waste it either. He was going to do one of his favorite things, roaming. This island was big enough he would get plenty of time and space to himself for a while. And there was plenty of time to roam over the island before the sun set. Angling for the edge of the town, Law walked towards the forest.

The walk was like any other. The hot sun was hidden behind the cooler canopy of the forest. The birds were singing. A couple of squirrels were romping around in search for nuts. Even a rabbit scurried out from underneath a bush in front of him. He enjoyed their presence yet also ignored them as he continued on his walk through the forest. Suddenly, he wasn't alone. His senses picked up on someone else walking in the forest with him. Scanning his eyes through the trees he saw nothing, until he rounded a tree. There he almost crashed into a blue blur. He caught his body, stumbling back two steps before stabilizing himself. It was a young girl, looking as startled as he felt. Her dull grey eyes stared back at him in shock, as if she never thought another person could be walking around in the forest. Parting his lips, he started to speak to her but nothing came out. His mouth clamped shut as he stared at her. Instantly he could tell something wasn't normal about her. There was this odd inhuman aura around her body. His hand gripped tighter on his sheath. Something shifted. Nature closed in around him. He was standing in the middle of the forest with a pack of wolves surrounding him, ready to attack and devour him. Then he was standing on a cliff. Dark clouds were rolling in. Lightning flashed as thunder boomed. The ground below him trembled. He was going to get swallowed up in nature.

"What?" she asked.

The danger faded. He blinked. Looking around he found himself still in the forest. He didn't go anywhere. And there were no animals surrounding him. He brought his eyes back to the girl and finally took full note of her appearance. She was only a child. A head shorter than him with unnatural sky blue hair that had a small wave in it and fell to her shoulder blades. Her skin was dark like she had spent many hours out in the sun. But her eyes, it was her eyes that brought more curiosity to him. They were lifeless and grey, frustrated and angry. She had clearly gone through something terrible. Light shone thought the leaves, bouncing off something and into his eyes. Looking down he found she was wearing a necklace made from silver. In the four corners were gems that he had never seen before. He barely caught a glimpse of the word before her hand grabbed it and tucked it in her shirt.

"Are you going to just stand there and stare?" she asked. "Are you lost or something?"
"No," Law said coming back to his senses. "I'm not lost. Just out for a walk."

She narrowed her eyebrows at him. The corner of her lips twitching, wanting to pull down into a frown.

"What are you doing out here?" Law asked.

She frowned. "Walking."

A bird landed on her shoulder. It chirped, seemingly angry at something. He watched as her lips moved slightly as if she was answering the creature. His head tilted, taking a closer look at her lips. She was talking to the creature. His eyebrow knitted.

"What? Never spoke to an animal before?" she asked.

"No. Well, not to one that couldn't talk back," Law said. "I have spoken to a mink as I have one on my crew."

"Talk back?" she asked. "All animals can talk."

"No, they can't," Law said.

"Yes," she said forcefully. "They can."

Movement from behind her drew his eyes. It was a bear. His eyebrows rose on his head. He gripped his sword harder knowing bears never came this close to people unless they were hand raised or a mink or protecting cubs or hungry. Confusion slammed into his mind when her hand automatically went to the bear's head as it stepped up beside her. "Friend of yours?"

"Yes," she said. Without another word the girl turned and ran away from him. The bear quickly followed.

"Well." Law rubbed his neck. "That was interesting."

He continued his walk for a few more hours. Returning to his crew, they spoke about what they had done that day while they ate at a local tavern. But he remained quiet about the girl and the bear. He was unsure exactly on what to tell them. It was possible that the girl hand raised that bear. People have done it before. Some pirates even had animals, carnivores, on their ships. Maybe she wasn't so abnormal as he thought. Still he couldn't get his mind off of her and the images that had gone through his head. He knew he wasn't imagining things, or not really. And he knew the girl didn't have illusionary powers. If she did she would have used them and never let anyone see her. So what had happened between them?

For the next two days, Law found himself looking for the mysterious blue haired girl he met in the forest when he went on walks. He never found her. Footprints were in random places all over the woods. But he never could find the right path that would lead him to her. It was like she did that on purpose to keep him from finding her. Nor did he ever tell his crew about her despite them noticing odd behavior in him.

Currently, he was walking through the town looking for the girl thinking maybe she lived in town instead of in the woods. He searched for hours until he found his stomach tell him it was past time to eat. Only then did he notice how silly he was being chasing after a girl that probably didn't even live around here.

Looking to his right he found he was standing in front of a restaurant. The familiar smell of grilled fish was coming from the building so he entered into it. Scanning his eyes around the room he found he had hit the lunch rush. The only empty table he could find was in the back corner. He walked over to it, sat down, and waited for the waitress to come over.

"Be with you in a moment," a strikingly familiar voice said.

Law's eyes went right to her as she rushed by him. A sweet smell filled his nostrils.

"Sorry for you wait." The girl pulled plates off the large tray she was balancing in her left hand off and placed them on the table. She then tucked the tray under her arm and walked over to him. Her eyes never met his until she had pulled a small notebook and pencil from her apron. A small amount of surprise rose in her grey eyes upon seeing him. She froze.

Nature surrounded him again. A cool breeze blew over a beach before he was back in the restaurant with her. Law waited for her to say something. When she didn't, he said, "You going to ask me what I want?"
Shaking herself from her shock, she stepped up to him. "Sorry. What would you like to drink?"

"Sweet tea," Law said.

"Fine. I'll get that in and-"

"I already know what I want to eat," Law said.

She looked up from her notebook. A blink.

"I'll take the grilled fish and onigiri," Law said. His eyes dropped to her shirt. The outline inside of her shirt clearly told him she still had the necklace on. He brought his eyes back up to hers.

She nodded then wrote the order down and scurried off to the kitchen.

Through the door leading to the kitchen, he could see her. She handed the order over to a man- who he assumed was a cook -before another man with green hair appeared beside her. Law kneaded his eyebrows. Nature surrounded him again. Several vines and flowers grew up around him. Multiple scents of flowers over took the spices in the air.

Law blinked. The feeling disappeared. Focusing his eyes back on the two, he watched them as they spoke. Concern appeared on the green haired man's face before casting a glance over at him. The man was clearly older than she was but he still looked rather young to the pirate. The man then said something to the girl to which she shook her head in reply. The man frowned but nodded and walked away from her. The girl picked up his drink and brought it over to him. He asked, "Aren't you a little young to be working?"

"No." She frowned. "You're meal will be out shortly."

Before Law could say anything else, she walked away from him. He leaned back against his chair, waiting for her to return. Four times she came back out of the kitchen to wait on other tables before bringing his meal over to him. The rest of the time she served other guests, one in particular was a pirate who had a clear lustful interest in her. If she noticed the lust in the pirate's gaze she never showed it. But the green haired man was also close by when she went to that pirate's table, carefully watching her. The man's action made him wonder what his relationship was to the blue hair girl was. Was he her boyfriend? Her husband? Her brother? They didn't reveal which it was. There was only protectiveness between them.

"Let me know if you need anything else," she said.

"Thank you." Law watched her walk away before turning his attention to his meal. He ate slowly, his eyes lifting to her every time she came into the dinning room. She appeared to do the same. Or maybe she was just checking to see if he needed something. He wasn't sure. She did come over a couple times to refill his drink and ask him if he needed anything else. And each time that sweet smell appeared. She had to be wearing perfume, but he couldn't place what perfume smelled like sugar.

"Are you sure there's nothing else I can get you?" she asked.

"No," Law said. "Why?"

"Because you've been sitting there for hours," she said.

Law looked around. The lunch crowd was gone. No one else was in the room. Leaning back in his chair, he smirked at her. "Is there something wrong with a paying customer just sitting here? Is there a rule saying we have to leave once we've finished eating?"

"No," she said slowly.

Law lifted his glass. "Then I think I'll stay for a little while longer. How about some more tea?"

"Fine." She left for the pitcher. "Be right back."

"How long have you worked here?" Law found himself asking when she returned.

She paused and looked at him.

He couldn't help but notice she hesitated to answer that question.

"There anything else I can get for you?" she then asked.

"No," Law said. "I'm good."

She nodded before walking off.

Law sat there, drinking his tea and going over why he was still here and everything he knew about her. It was obvious he was curious about this girl. She spoke to animals as if they were normal everyday people. She believed they could talk back. She liked walking through forests apparently. Her eyes were abnormally grey with deep pain inside of them. But why exactly was she so different from anyone else? She was human like…an odd, unexplainable feel hammered into his chest and mind. Calling this blue haired girl human didn't seem right. It flat out didn't fit her.

With a frustrated growl of his unexpected obsession over this girl he knew he would never see again after they left this island, he finished his tea, placed some tip money on the table, and left the restaurant. Stepping out of the restaurant a subordinate called to him.

"Hey, Captain!" Conner called. "Where have you been?"

"Yeah," Shachi said. "We haven't seen you all day."

"I've been around," Law said.

"Well, we're just checking in," Shachi said. "The rest of the crew is scattered around the island. But we're all wondering if we're still leaving in two days."

"We are," Law said. "Be sure to remind the crew of that."

"We will," they said before running off.

Law watched them disappear into the crowd. His decision was made. They were leaving in two days. And she would never cross his mind nor would he see her again.

Four days past since Neo had accidently ran into that man in the forest. She hadn't seen him in the woods since then but he always popped up at the restaurant for one or two meals a day. And he always sat in her section. Just like he was doing now. His steel color eyes seemed to always be on her. He was watching her. He didn't even try to hide it. Part of her was flattered that he was a repeat customer, mean she got extra money from him, but the other part was cautious and concerned. He was a very intimidating man. He was a very dangerous man. There was a wild look in his eyes that she's had seen before in her godfather and his pirate crew. And it was obvious that he could tell she was different from the others on the island.

But she wasn't sure if he was a pirate or not. She wasn't sure if he knew she was different. As told by her godfather, some humans could only sense elementals were different while some knew they were but couldn't do anything to prove it. It all depended on how strong a person was.

It was possible this man was a pirate. Though she never bothered looking through bounty posters and she certainly never asked him. Their conversations revolved around the food and drinks he ordered, which always turned out to be grilled fish and onigiri with sweet tea. Clearly it was his favorite. And he also favored spots and tattoos. The spots were both on his jeans and on his hat. His tattoos were on his fingers, arms, hands, and probably other places underneath his cloths. She tried not to think about it.

"May I get you something else?" Neo asked him despite knowing he wasn't going to get anything else. Even his tea glass was still full.

"I'm fine," he said. "I'll let you know if I do."

Neo nodded. The bell rang. She turned to the door and frowned. It was Jeb once again. His advances towards her were really growing old. She had no idea how much longer he was going to stay around. Surely he would be leaving soon. No way he was going to hang up his hat on being a pirate just to bother her. Forcing herself to move, she walked over to the table. "The usual?"

Jeb hiccupped. The alcohol on him was strong. He had already been drinking before coming here. "Sure thing, baby." Another hiccup. "With a side of you."

Rolling her eyes, she headed to the kitchen and brought back his whiskey. She set the bottle on the table then turned to leave. His cold hand grabbed her wrist. She frowned.

"You're such a sweet little thing," Jeb said. "Why would you want to work in a place like this?"

"I don't know," Neo said. "Guess I like to eat and have clothes to wear."

"Personally, I'd like to see you without clothes." Jeb ran his eyes over her body.

"And I'd like to see you without your head attached to your shoulders," Neo said. "I guess we're both not going to get what we want."

The people near them laughed.

Jeb shot them a glare, causing them to go quiet before turning back to her. "I could give you a better life than this."

"Sure you could." Neo rolled her eyes. She turned to walk off but was stopped by Jeb tightening his hold on her wrist. "Let go. I have other tables and customers I need to attend to."

"I ain't done talking to ya," Jeb said. "You're my waitress right now and any time I come in here."

"Sorry, bud, that's not how this works," Neo said. "I only wait on the table you're sitting at. I don't belong to you."

"From this day forward you do," Jeb said. He smiled, his missing and black teeth showing. "Don't you know anything about pirates, sweetheart?"

"I know plenty about pirates," Neo said.

"Then you must know that once we've set our sights on a treasure we don't let it go until we have it," Jeb said. "And you are the most beautiful treasure I have ever seen."

"I'm not your treasure," Neo said.

"You are now." Jeb reached out for her thigh.

Neo grabbed his wrist, kicked her foot out she knocked the chair out from underneath him, and tossed him to the floor. "Don't touch me."

Everyone in the room laughed.

One of restaurant's guests said, "She's a feisty one, isn't she?"

"She sure showed you, pirate," another one added.

Flushed with rage and growling, Jeb pushing himself back on his feet. He pushed the table over, glass shattered on the floor. "You're going to pay for that." Turning to her he cracked his knuckles before swinging at her.

Neo ducked his punch. Using his momentum, she grabbed his arm and flipped him over onto his back.

People laughed harder.

"You little brat!" Jeb scrambled back to his feet. He grabbed his sword and started pulling it out.

Neo stumbled backwards. There was no real way for her to defend herself against a sword without her crystals. Her heart raced but she refused to let herself panic. She still would be able to dodge his attacks. Like her Godfather taught her, she would be patient, calm, and look for her opening to disarm him.

But before Jeb could get his sword all the way out, both Kailen and Gaven appeared. Kailen stepped in front of Neo while Gaven grabbed Jeb's wrist and pushed the sword back into the sheath.

"I think it's time you leave," Gaven said.

"Gaven," Neo said.

"You all right?" Gaven asked looking back at her.

"Yes, I'm fine," Neo said.

Gaven nodded before shoving Jeb towards the door. "Get out and don't ever come back. I'm done with you harassing my staff."

"You'll pay for this. Mark my words you will pay," Jeb said before leaving the building.

"Neo, are you hurt?" Kailen turned to his sister, his eyes scanning for possible injuries.

"I'm fine, Kai," Neo said. "Stop worrying."

"That was impressive," Gaven said. "I intend no disrespect, but I never would have guessed someone of your small size could handle a pirate like that."

"Godfather taught us both how to handle ourselves," Neo said.

"He's a good man I'm sure," Gaven said before heading back to the kitchen.

"I bet he wouldn't say that if he knew who our godfather is," Neo mumbled. She turned to help her brother clean up the mess the small brawl had caused. He put the table back on its feet while she started picking up the broken glass. Her body paused when she saw the spotted hatted man was watching her again. His steel colored eyes held a mix of surprise and amusement at what he had just seen her do. Bristling, she turned away from him and focused picking up glass from the floor. She didn't mean to give him another reason to be interested in her. Luckily the rest of the day went without incident. "Finally. I never though the day would end."

"At least we have the day off tomorrow," Kailen said as they walked towards the cave.

"I might hide out in the cave all day," Neo said.

"Might be a good idea with Jeb still around," Kailen said.

"What are you going to do?" Neo asked.

"Probably spend most of the time at the harbor," Kailen said.

"Well, watch that one guy," Neo said.

"The one with the yellow hoodie?" Kailen looked at her.

Neo nodded. "He's trouble."

"Don't worry," Kailen said. "I'll avoid him as much as possible."

Neo rolled onto her back and stared up at the cave ceiling. All the animals left her long ago to find food and water for themselves. And Kailen had been gone all morning long. Boredom was setting in. She wanted to just sleep but her mind wanted to do nothing but go over what happened back on Luminous. She stressed and agonized over what she could have done different to save her parents. Groaning she ran her hands over her face and forced herself to sit up. Sitting around doing nothing turned out to be a bad thing. Kailen was right. She needed to move and do things to keep herself from sinking farther into depression. Pulling on her shoes, she left the cave to do just that. Maybe she could help her brother look for someone going to Sabaody. Heck, maybe she could charm someone into taking them. Maybe they had wasted enough time here.

She was about to reach the edge of the forest when the hairs on her neck suddenly stood up. Pausing, she looked around to see what could have possible caused this reaction. Nothing but forest came into her view. She turned back to the town and jumped when Jeb appeared from nowhere. "What are you doing here?"

"Just coming to say hello," Jeb said.

Neo shivered when he scanned his eyes up and down her body. Sure he came to say hello. "Get lost."

"I can't do that," Jeb said taking a step closer to her. "I already told you. Once a pirate sets his sights on treasure he won't let it go."

"And I already told you I'm not your treasure," Neo said taking a step back.

"You are. And you'll always be mine," Jeb said walking closer to her. "We're setting sail today and you're coming with me."

Neo scoffed, bringing her fists up in defense. "Then you're going to have one heck of a time getting me to your ship. You should already know from yesterday that I'm not a push over despite my size."

"I couldn't help but notice that necklace you wear," Jeb said. "Don't you know you shouldn't wear such expensive jewelry around pirates?"

"I'll do as I please," Neo said.

Jeb chuckled. "And as will I."

A twig snapped. Neo's eyes drew towards it before she could stop herself. Her heart skipped a beat. Jeb's crew was standing there, surrounding her, with smirks on their faces. She growled. Clearly they had planned this. They were going to try and force her onto their ship by outnumbering her when she was alone. "You've been watching us."

"Of course I have," Jeb said. "All we had to do was wait until you were alone."

Neo gritted her teeth. Mentally she called out for the animals near by to come and help her. It was her only defense.

"Attack, men," Jeb said.

One lunged at her. Kicking out her foot she nailed him in the gut before roundhouse kicking a few more pirates. Two squirrels ran up a couple pirates' pants legs. They screamed out. Iron filled the air. They had been bitten.

"What the heck?" Jeb asked. "What's your problem?"

"Something bit us, Captain!"

The squirrels ran out of their pants.

"Squirrels? You're letting squirrels make you scream like sissies? Get her, men!" Jeb shouted. "Grab her!"

Neo landed three punches before the pirates grabbed her arms, pinning them to her sides. Her heart leaped into her throat. The animals were coming, but not fast enough.

"Got ya!" Jeb cried rushing forward with his sword out.

Neo gasped. Sharp pain raced through her body as the sword punctured her lower left stomach. Warm blood dripped down her skin.

"You shouldn't have embarrassed me," Jeb said. His hand wrapped around her necklace, pulling her closer to him. "You're lucky I've taken a fancy towards ya. If not that would have been a fatal hit."

Neo cough, blood slipped from her mouth. "You…you won't get away with this."

Jeb chuckled. He opened his mouth to reply but was halted when a sharp peck came down on his head. "Ouch! What the heck?!"

Birds swarmed the two pirates, pecking them. More squirrels and rabbits ran out from bushes and sunk their teeth into the pirates' skin. A fox ran out, biting a pirate on his rump. Screams filled the air.

"Get away from me!"

"What's going on with these stupid animals?!"

"Why are they attacking us?!"

"Get off of me!"

"Filthy vermin!" Jeb sliced his sword through the air, but missed his targets each time.

The pirates' hands fell off of her. Neo stumbled backwards, pressing her hand to her wound in an attempt to stop the bleeding. She turned and ran. Desperation filled her. Her solar crystal still wasn't responding to her calls. She needed help. She needed her brother. A bird answered her call. It flew down and beside her as she spoke to it. "Please, find…find my brother."

The bird chirped and quickly flew off.

"Great. Now what do I do?" Neo asked herself. She knew the animals would give her time enough to escape but where should she go? If she went back to the cave then it would take longer for her to get help. But if she ran into the town someone would see her blood and they would try and take her to a doctor. She had no clue which would be better and which would be worse.

Law sighed when it started to become obvious that the blue haired girl wasn't going to show up at the restaurant today. A waitress walked over to him and said, "Do you need anything else?"

"That blue haired girl," Law said. "Where is she?"

"She's off today," she said.

Law frowned. That should have been obvious. "Do you know where she lives?"

"I'm afraid not," she said before a customer called for more food. "Please, excuse me."

Placing his money on the table, he got up and left, asking a few more people if they knew where the girl lived on the way out. No one knew. Stepping out into the hot sun, he looked around the town. With no better idea, he took off towards the forest in hopes to clear his mind before they had to set sail. Within a few minutes the hot sun was blocked by the leaves of the trees. His gate was slow and steady, enjoying this walk before having to be confided to the sub again. There was no reason to hurry. So he didn't.

A mere few minutes into his walk he was caught off guard by a blue blur dashing around a tree. It collided into him, barely moving him. He blinked. It was her. The girl he had been searching for was right in front of him. She glanced up at him, her eyes filled with fright and pain. Then he smelled it, the all too familiar scent of iron, of blood was in the air. Before he could say anything she ran around him and disappeared into the forest. Turning his body, he started after her, but paused when something bumped against his boot. Looking down he saw the silver necklace he had seen on her before. He picked it up, finding the chain had broke, and read the word on it. "Neo."

"After her!" an all too familiar voice shouted. "I want her back!"

Law stepped behind a tree. Seconds later Jeb and his pirate crew rushed by him. All were covered in bleeding wounds, some which looked like teeth marks. His lips curled down into a frown when his eyes landed on the fresh blood on Jeb's sword. This guy must have hurt her. But how did they get all those wounds on their bodies? There were too many and they were too small for a person to make. He waited until they were farther away before following them.

Kailen eyed the similar boiler suits a group of four men were wearing. They were loading things upon the only submarine in the harbor. The sub stood out, or so he thought. It was yellow with a black smiling face on it and the word death painted in black. There was no black flag indicating that it was a pirate ship but the Jolly Roger they wore on their suits and sub suggested other wise. The guy in the restaurant wearing the yellow hoodie had the same exact smiley face on his chest. They were all on the same crew. It was possible they were heading in the direction he and Neo needed to go but he couldn't bring himself to ask them. He turned to look for another ship but paused when something felt off to him. Neo entered his mind. He needed to go check on her. Turning away from the harbor he headed back to the cave.

As he reached the end of the docks, a bird flew down into his face, chirping up a storm. "Hey, hold on. Slow down. I can't understand you. What?!"

People stopped and looked at him when he yelled.

Ignoring them he took off in a run. "Crap! This is all my fault! I knew he was interested in her! I shouldn't have left her alone like that! If she dies I'll never forgive myself!"

Kailen sensed out his sister. She was running in the opposite direction of him. Panic settled in his chest. She should have been coming to him or going back to the cave. But then he remembered the battle strategies Shanks taught them. It would have been a mistake for her to go back to the cave. They were chasing her and could pin her inside. And it would have been bad if she came into the town. Someone would have seen her. If she was hurt then they would try and force her to go to a doctor. He picked up his pace. Reaching the forest, he summoned his crystals. Vines grew up, lifting him into the air and rushing through the forest like fast moving snakes. "Hold on, Neo! I'm coming!"

Law rushed to catch up to them, slipping her necklace into his pocket for safekeeping. Unfortunately, it was far too easy. He knew it was because of the blood the girl was losing. She had to be getting light headed about right now and in a lot of pain. He reached them. The pirates had her surrounded. She was slumped against a tree, holding her hand to her bloody shirt.

"Finally," Jeb said.

Standing half hidden behind a tree, Law watched as the pirates moved in closer to her.

"You're coming with us."

Law grabbed the hilt of his sword. It wasn't his normal behavior to save someone he didn't know but he couldn't walk away from her. His sword was almost out of its sheath when the flora around him started going wild. Large vines raced passed him. In a split second, the green haired boy from the restaurant was dropping down in front of the girl. Several light green crystals were hovering around the man's body. "What the heck? How did that guy just…? Is that guy controlling the plants?"

No words came after that. Law wasn't sure of what he was watching. Then it happened. In a mere few seconds the vines snapped out around the pirates' bodies. The pirates screamed and struggled but were quickly cut off. The unmistakable sounds of bones being crushed replaced their voices. Their bodies dropped lifelessly to the ground. The green haired, plant-controlling man had killed them all with one move, a move that shouldn't have been possible even with a devil fruit.

The flora went back to normal.

The strange crystals vanished.

Law sheathed his sword and waited. There was no way he was going to let these two go. He was going to take them onto his sub and learn their secrets one way or another.

Ignoring the men he had just killed, Kailen dropped to his knees. Pulling Neo up and in his arms, he cursed himself. The whole lower half of her shirt was covered in blood, as was her left pant leg. The wound was bad, most likely life threatening if he didn't get her help soon. But could he do that without having to answer a lot of questions?

"K-Kai," Neo said.

"Hold on, Neo," Kailen said. "I'm going to get you some help."

"S-sorry," Neo said. "My crystals…they won't appear."

"Don't talk," Kailen said. "Save your strength." He moved to picked her up but stopped when something across the forest moved. Looking up his heart jolted. Standing there was the yellow hoodie man from the restaurant. He swallowed. If this man was that close then it was possible that he saw his crystals and what he did with the flora around them. He wanted to read the man's eyes but the spotted hat he wore fell over them, blocking his view.

"Interesting abilities you have there," the man said.

Kailen's heart hammered in his chest. So the man did see him. There was only one way out of this: Lie. "A devil fruit."

"Interesting," he said. "I've never seen a devil fruit with that kind of power before. And I've never heard of a devil fruit user needing a conductor to use their power."

"Yeah. Well, there are so many out there," Kailen said.

Neo coughed. Blood dripped down her chin. She passed out.

"Neo." Kailen looked down at her.

"She's bleeding too much," the man said. "She needs to see a doctor."

"I know that!" Kailen snapped.

"Then what's holding you back?" The man lifted his head.

Kailen swallowed. The man's eyes were steel grey and full of questions and a spark of purpose. It was all too clear that this man didn't buy that he was using a devil fruit. There was no way to lie his way out of this. They were trapped.

"Let's not play games here," the man said. "It's clear you're hesitate to get some help for her. If you weren't you would already be heading for a doctor. So, since I already saw what you did, I want you to come aboard my sub. I'm a doctor. I can help her."

Kailen gritted his teeth. His mind raced with his options. He could take her into town and get one of the doctors there to take care of her. Or he could go with this man. This man who saw him use his magic. This man who had been watching his sister for four days. This man who was clearly not going to let them get away.

"You need to make up your mind fast," the man said. "A lot of pirates don't disinfect their swords. I'm certain she has an infection running through her blood right now. It could kill her. Besides…" he dug into his pocket. "I'm sure she'll want this back when she wakes up."

Kailen's heart jumped into his throat. The man somehow had Neo's birth medallion. His eyes shot to Neo's chest. It was really missing. His eyes shot back to the man. "How did you get that?!"

"Does it really matter? Your friend there is dying," he said. "What's your decision going to be? Take your chances with a doctor who doesn't know anything about you or with a doctor who knows you two are very different from everyone else?"

Kailen growled. Never before had he felt being back into a corner like this. He didn't have time to sit here and stew over which was the safer option. With no more time left to decide, he said, "Fine. I accept your offer. Please, help her."

"Good," he said with a smirk. "Then follow me."

Author's Notes: Sorry for the delay. Our internet decided not to work last week.