A few changes to grammar, and a small extension to the sunset scene. Hope you guys enjoy it! For those who have read my story before, I'm sorry update versions are taking so long. To those reading these chapters for the first time, bear with me, updates can take a while (just ask those still waiting for new chapters)
Forest stirred slightly as she was gently being shaken awake. She looked up at Sanji's smiling face and tried rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
"Sanji-san, is lunch ready?" she asked.
"It's actually dinnertime now, sleeping beauty. You and Zoro slept straight through lunch," he replied as he bent over to pick her up. He had only lifted her a few inches when he felt a sword against his throat. He looked up in surprise at Zoro. Forest calmly reached up and gently moved Zoro's arm away from Sanji.
"Zoro, it's just Sanji," she mumbled. Zoro opened one eye to see a surprised cook staring at him. He grunted as he put his sword away. Sanji held Forest in his arms and looked down at the green-haired swordsman who had already gone back to sleep.
"Oi, marimo. Get up. Dinner is ready," Sanji said, heading towards the galley.
Well, at least I know one way to get him up now Sanji thought to himself. He seems very protective of Emerald. And I'd still like to know why Emerald talks the way she does. When he had told her "it's nothing" he would have expected her to say "don't give me that bullshit" more than her actual response. After all, she did say she was growing up on the streets. But her language seemed a little more refined. Sanji decided things could wait until after dinner.
After dinner, Forest sat on the railing of the deck watching the sunset. Her eyes shimmered as she watched the colors change. There were plenty of clouds in the distance, which added to the array of colors.
"It looks like we might run into a storm tonight," Nami stated from behind her. Forest turned to look at her, an annoyed expression on her face.
"You can't just sit and look at the pretty colors, can you?" she asked, not bothering to try to hide her irritation. This got Nami and Sanji, who had been coming to check on Forest, laughing. At the sound of Sanji's laughter, Forest turned around excited.
"Sanji, look at the sunset!" she exclaimed, pointing towards the west. Sanji smiled as he scooped the girl up in his arms.
"Yes Emerald-san, I see it," he replied calmly as he joined her. Forest watched the sunset, her eyes sparkling. She laid her head against Sanji's chest. The sky was filled with various shades of pinks, golds, and oranges.
"I've always loved the sunset," she said. Sanji smiled, looking down at the girl in his arms.
"And why is that?" he asked. Of course sunsets were pretty with all the colors.
"Because it starts with bright, passionate colors. Then it fades, leaving cooler shades before the stars start twinkling. After the bright colors fade, before the stars come out, when everything is bathed in that bluish light... that's my favorite time of day," Forest explained softly, forgetting her situation. Sanji and Nami both looked at her eyes while she watched the bright colors. Those green eyes seemed deeper and more understanding than ever before. They stayed and watched the sunset until the stars came out.
"Alright, I think it's about time for bed," Sanji said, heading below deck.
"Can I sleep in the library Sanji?" Forest asked, looking up at him with big eyes. Sanji sighed as he opened the door to the library.
"You know, it really is hard to say no to you with those big green eyes," Sanji replied, smiling down at her. Forest looked up at him innocently. This time it really was complete innocence. She had noticed when she was young that Zoro had a hard time saying 'no' to her. In fact, he never could say no to her. And on the ship, she was hardly ever told 'no'. She thought they didn't tell her no because she was only 3 years old.
"That's why no one wants to tell me no? Because of my eyes?" she asked. Sanji smiled as he put her in the chair she seemed to have taken a liking to.
"Well, we don't like telling you no because we like to see you happy," Sanji explained, "but it makes it even harder to say no when you look at us with those eyes. What Ace said is true, you really do have beautiful eyes." Forest tried to hide her happiness at being told this. When she had been young (the first time) all the kids had made fun of her for her unusually large eyes.
"Sleep well Emerald-san," Sanji said as he stood to leave, "I have to go finish cleaning up the galley." Sanji frowned slightly as he returned to the galley. He had sat for the better part of an hour to watch the sunset, just to make the little girl happy. He sighed as he started cleaning up. He would be up late cleaning now. He heard the low grumble of thunder in the distance.
Great, and to top it all off, we will be running into a storm tonight he thought, remembering Nami's prediction earlier. He lit up a cigarette and set to work, hoping the storm would be a calm one, knowing well this wasn't likely to happen.
Sanji left the galley an hour and a half later. They had run into the storm as predicted. Lightning lit up the sky as the thunder boomed. Sanji looked up at the lookout room he knew Zoro was in, most likely asleep. Amazingly, none of the crew seemed to be wakened by the storm. Sanji's hopes were half realized. There was no rain yet and the winds were still calm. Forest's face ran through the cook's mind.
I better check on her before I go to bed he thought to himself as he headed for the library. As he opened the door, lightning shot across the sky, revealing the child curled up on the chair. Her knees were pulled up to her chest and she was trembling. She looked up and her green eyes locked on Sanji's blue.
"Emerald, are you okay?" Sanji asked, rushing to her. She shook her head violently as Sanji help her close.
"I'm so scared of thunderstorms," she replied shakily, "Can you take me up to Zoro please?" Sanji grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around her.
"Of course I can sweetie," he answered. Forest was small and didn't weigh a whole lot, but Sanji found out that children seem to get heavier when you carry them up a bunch of stairs. He opened the door to find the first mate asleep on the bed. Sanji sighed as he put Forest next to Zoro.
It's a good thing we don't get attacked when Zoro's on night watch Sanji thought. He turned to leave when he felt a small hand grab his. He turned to see Forest holding on to him, her eyes clouded with worry and fear.
"Please stay with me tonight Sanji," she pleaded. Sanji looked over at the sleeping swordsman.
"Where would I sleep, Emerald?" Sanji asked, "There isn't a whole lot of room with the marimo's weights." Forest looked at him confused.
"There's plenty of room on the bed Sanji," she replied simply, as if it were obvious. Sanji attempted to hide the disgusted look that crossed his face. No way in HELL he was sleeping on the same bed as that damn marimo! Forest's eyes began to tear up.
"Please Sanji? Zoro's a heavy sleeper, and I get scared," she whispered. Sanji wanted to tell her it was better if he just slept in his hammock, but right as he opened his mouth to tell her so, a bolt of lightning struck right outside as the thunder crashed. A look of pure terror crossed the girl's face as she let go of his hand and threw herself face first into the pillow behind her. She pulled her knees back up to her chest and covered her head with her hands. Sanji sighed as he climbed into the bed and pulled the covers over himself and the shaking figure beside him.
"Alright, but only for tonight. Do not expect this to ever happen again, okay?" Sanji said, putting his arms around her. Forest relaxed in his arms. Sanji fell asleep knowing she was safe. Forest opened her eyes to see the cook sleeping soundly.
Wow, that was quick she thought to herself. She cringed when she heard another loud crash outside. She couldn't help but let out a slight whimper. Zoro turned over in his sleep and put his arm protectively around her, inches away from the cook's body. Forest turned carefully to face her brother. He never did have a problem sleeping. As always, he was snoring and behind her, she could hear Sanji's steady, deep breathing. She closed her eyes and could feel herself drifting off.
Sanji's been watching out for me like a father. And I've got my brother back as well she thought to herself before falling into a peaceful sleep. For the first time in years, she felt safe and cared for.
Forest closed her eyes tight as she tried convincing herself she was still asleep. She sighed as she finally gave in to reality and opened her eyes. The sun was giving off its light, but hadn't quite broken the horizon yet. She looked to her left to see Sanji sleeping. She could hear her brother's soft snoring coming from her right. She quietly crawled out of the bed and tiptoed downstairs to watch the sunrise. As she stepped out on the deck, the breeze caressed her face. She took a deep breath and sat down on the grass.
Maybe I should have woken one of them she thought to herself I don't know if Zoro will like waking up next to Sanji. She decided she was in a good mood and didn't feel like walking back up the stairs.
"It will be probably okay," she said to herself.
Zoro somehow knew Forest had been in his bed last night. He reached up to stroke her hair, but ended up touching someone's hand instead. He opened his eyes to see the sleeping cook. He immediately jumped out of bed and turned his own mattress over, knocking the cook straight on the ground. Not the best wake up call.
"What the hell are you doing in my bed?" Zoro yelled at a very pissed off Sanji.
"What the fuck did it look like I was doing? I was sleeping, asshole," Sanji replied groggily. Zoro's face turned red with anger as Sanji looked around the room.
"SLEEP IN YOUR OWN DAMN BED!" Zoro bellowed as he put his bed back in its rightful place.
"I only slept up here because Emerald didn't want me to leave," Sanji shot back, "where is she anyway?" Zoro's temper seemed to cool considerably at the mention of the little girl.
"You might want to check outside. She's probably watching the sunrise," he answered, his eyebrow twitching. That girl really knew how to push his buttons.
"Why did she want to sleep up here last night? Doesn't she usually stay in the library?" Zoro asked, trying his best to keep from sounding annoyed.
"She was in the library, but there was a thunderstorm last night and she insisted on coming up here with you," Sanji replied, failing to keep from sounding annoyed and slightly jealous. Zoro bit his tongue to keep from pointing out Sanji's jealousy. It was probably in Forest's best interest to keep quiet. Otherwise, they might find it odd that she is much more attached to Zoro, but she spends most of her time with Sanji. Zoro decided to just leave the conversation at that and head down to the deck. He silently opened the door at the bottom and peeked out. Forest was sitting there, watching the sun coming up from the east. Zoro and Sanji both stepped out, careful not to make any noise. Sanji crept up slowly and put his hands over her eyes. Forest smiled as she reached up to pull his hands down.
"Hey Sanji! You're up already?" she smiled as she turned to see him, "it's a good thing you were up before Zoro. He might not have liked waking up to see you next to him".
"Oh, I didn't like it," Zoro answered from behind them. Forest turned, surprised, to see her brother with his arms crossed. She could tell he was clearly annoyed, both with her and the cook. She gave him one of her 'please-don't-be-mad' smiles. Zoro sighed as he turned to the cook.
"Why don't you get started on breakfast," he said. It wasn't really meant as a command, but more of a suggestion. Sanji took it as what it was; a way of turning his frustration away from Forest. Sanji smiled as he got up.
"Fine, Luffy will be getting up about the time I finish anyway," he answered as he headed into the galley. He didn't mind the swordsman's aggravation being taken out on him instead of the little girl. As soon as the cook was out of hearing range, Zoro turned to his sister.
"Okay, I think it's about time we talked about this," he said, sitting down next to her. She quickly turned her attention back to the horizon.
"What is there to talk about?" she asked, avoiding the impending conversation. Zoro picked her up and set her in his lap.
"I know you don't want to talk about it, but the rest of the crew is bound to figure some things out eventually," he started, "I think it would be better to tell them the truth. At least let them know your real name. I would also like to know how your life has been. It's been 18 years since I last saw you". Forest looked down at her hands feeling guilty. She had heard about things in his life, especially when the marines happened to come around. She took a deep breath before she started talking.
"Well, I have a son now, which is why I originally set out to find you after being turn into… this," she said, gesturing at herself, "his father died shortly after I had him. He was a marine…" Zoro looked down at his sister. He could see the pain clearly written in her eyes.
"Do you know who it was that killed him?" Zoro asked, afraid that the answer would be one of the crew, or worse, himself.
"Yeah I know who it was," Forest said, her tone turning dark, "Arlong did". She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. Zoro began rubbing her back, which seemed to work much better at calming her than anything she could do herself. She opened her eyes as the delicious smells of Sanji's cooking wafted out from the galley. She darted towards the galley, leaving Zoro behind, a little confused.
"Hey, Sanji?" Forest said sweetly as she entered. Sanji turned to see her. She had her hands behind her back, shuffling her feet with her head hanging down. She looked just like a child who had to tell their parent that they had done something wrong.
"What is it sweetie?" Sanji asked smiling. Forest looked him in the eye and took a deep breath as Zoro walked in.
"I need to tell you something," she began. She looked back at Zoro, who just nodded. He figured Sanji would be the first one she came clean to. Well, besides Robin that is. She turned back to Sanji, who looked completely confused. She didn't know how much she should tell him.
"I, um…. I lied about my name," she started. She turned and looked back at Zoro with pleading eyes. She didn't want to do this by herself.
"Okay, so what is your name then?" Sanji asked calmly, turning the girl's attention back on him. Her head was bowed, but she looked up at him.
"My name is Forest," she said quietly. Sanji smiled at her and scooped her up.
"Alright then, Forest, would you mind telling me why you lied about your name?" Sanji asked, setting her down on the counter. "Well, yes, I would mind, but I think it's better that I explain everything," she answered, looking back over at Zoro once again. He sighed and took a few steps toward Sanji, who looked a little shocked over the situation.
"The truth is, Forest isn't really three," Zoro started, "she's twenty. She got mixed up with some dark magic…"
"Wait a minute," Sanji interrupted, "So she's really twenty, and her name is Forest. And she told you all of this before she told me?" Forest could see that she had hurt him.
"Please let me explain Sanji," Forest said softly. Sanji just nodded and she continued. "I didn't want anyone to know, but Robin had found my bag in the storage room," she explained. Sanji remembered the small bag he had found and left in the room. "In the bag, I had a couple of things that, well, gave my identity away". She pulled out a necklace from her pocket and held it up. Sanji looked at the silver, heart-shaped locket with Forest written on it. Forest looked away as she opened the locket to reveal the two pictures. Sanji's eyes grew wide as he looked at the picture of Zoro. He looked at the other picture and his jaw dropped. There was a little boy, who he could assume was Zoro, holding a baby in a pink blanket, smiling up at the camera.
"So… ," Sanji began, unable to finish his sentence.
"So, the baby is Forest," Zoro said, "she's really my little sister. Or half-sister if you want to be technical". Sanji looked over at the swordsman in shock. Although he didn't like being lied to, some things seemed to make sense now. Forest's vocabulary, Zoro's over protectiveness of her, her wanting to go to him when she was scared. Sanji looked back at Forest in disbelief. She didn't really look like Zoro at all.
Although he did say she was his half-sister Sanji thought to himself.
"Why are you telling me this now?" he asked Forest. She looked up at him with watery eyes.
"Zoro said it would be better to let everyone know. And I couldn't stand lying to you anymore… ," she looked down at her feet quickly, "I understand if you don't want to talk to me. I've noticed that you care about me. I just wanted you to care about who I really am, not who I was pretending to be".
Forest jumped off the counter and ran out of the room as the tears began spilling from her eyes. Zoro and Sanji both watched her go with sad eyes. Silence followed her sudden departure.
"You didn't chase after her," Zoro said, breaking the silence, "why not?" Sanji lit up a cigarette before answering.
"For the same reason you didn't. To let her calm down. And I'm guessing she isn't one who likes people to see her cry," he added. Zoro smirked and shook his head. Sanji seemed a little hurt at being lied to in such a way, but he could tell he wasn't angry.
"Hold on. Emerald, I mean Forest, said she knows how to speak Spanish. Where did she learn to speak Spanish?" Sanji asked suddenly. Zoro looked over at him with complete indifference.
"Well, our dad spoke Spanish, I learned it from him and taught Forest," he said nonchalantly. Sanji looked at him like he was crazy.
"What?" Zoro finally snapped.
"All this time we've known you, and you never thought to tell anyone you knew Spanish," Sanji spat. Zoro just shrugged.
"Well, it wasn't like we ever needed a Spanish-speaker. So no, I didn't think it was really important," Zoro answered. Sanji sighed, deciding to just leave it at that.
"So you and Forest have the same dad?" Sanji asked, trying to be civil towards the swordsman.
"Yes and no. He was a dad to both of us, but he wasn't Forest's biological father. June never wanted to talk about it," Zoro explained, "June was our mother's name". Sanji found it surprising that Zoro knew his question before it was asked.
Sanji started putting the food on the table for breakfast. He had made separate plates for Nami, Robin, and Forest. Zoro helped him get the table set.
"So, how do you propose we tell the rest of the crew?" Sanji asked after the table was set.
"Just tell them. Though I don't think it will get through to Luffy until she's back to normal," Zoro answered, "I'll take Forest's plate to her". Sanji looked at him a little doubtful.
"Do you know where she went?" he asked. Zoro nodded, "she's either hiding in the library or in the bathroom". Sanji picked up the plate and handed it to Zoro.
I'll make her another plate just in case the marimo gets lost he decided. Just then, the rest of the crew bounded in, ready for food. Zoro ducked out with Forest's food and Sanji hid the extra plate. Sanji planned to tell everyone after breakfast, hopefully Robin would be able to fill in any details he left out.
I just hope they don't get angry. I'm sure she had her reasons for lying to us about, well, everything Sanji thought to himself. He took a deep breath to keep himself from becoming angry and turned his attention to the ladies.
Meanwhile, Forest had wandered into the workshop while running off to the bathroom. All traces of tears were replaced by an aggravated expression.
You have got to be kidding me! Every time I go looking for the bathroom, I wind up in some other room she thought angrily, did they think it was a good idea to make a ship with rooms that move? 'Cuz it's not a good idea. It's irritating. She sighed and turned around to leave, only to see a certain green haired swordsman looking just as confused and irritated as her.
"Zoro, what are you doing here?" she asked. He looked down at her surprised.
"I was looking for you. Breakfast is ready," he said, holding her plate out to her. Forest smiled and took the plate from him. They sat down in the workshop, mainly because they were both tired of the moving rooms, and ate the plate of food.
"Why would she lie to US about this?" Nami demanded from the cook. Breakfast had ended and Sanji had told the rest of the crew everything he had found out.
"Maybe she lied because she didn't want us knowing the truth," Luffy offered. Everyone just stared at him like he was crazy.
"I think that's one I can answer," Robin offered.
"Robin? You knew about all of this?" Nami asked.
"Well, I got it out of the child after I found her things. She wasn't as forthcoming with me," Robin said, looking straight at Sanji. Sanji suddenly felt better knowing that she told him of her own free will.
"When Forest was two and Zoro was five, there had been a fire at their house. Zoro thought that his sister and father had died that day. However, their father had gotten Forest out through a back window," Robin explained, "So Forest lied about her name so that Zoro wouldn't find out that she was really his sister". Nami didn't look satisfied with her answer.
"That doesn't make any sense. She knew she had family left she could go to, so why didn't she?" Nami shot.
"Because I was always different," Forest answered from the doorway, "Zoro didn't have many friends 'cuz he would always defend his misfit sister. I wanted him to feel free to live his life. If he didn't have to look out for me all the time, then he could do what he wanted". Nami's expression softened. Zoro walked up and picked up Forest.
"Don't hold her decision against her. She was only two at the time," he said as he took a seat. Nami looked a bit confused.
"Forest, didn't you say before that you can speak Spanish?" she asked.
"Yeah, what's your point? Zoro speaks Spanish as well," she said, feeling a bit annoyed. As much time as they spent with her brother, she would have thought that they knew that much at least; "Unless my idiot brother found it unimportant to mention something like that," she thought out loud.
"Hey! I am not an idiot, and it wasn't important," Zoro shot back.
"Eres un idiota, hermano. Solo que no te das cuenta," Forest mumbled, smiling. Everyone stared at her as Zoro's face started turning red.
"Cállate! No soy un idiota!" Zoro yelled. Everyone just looked on, hoping for some sort of translation.
"Si, claro," Forest replied, rolling her eyes.
"Al menos yo no soy un bebé," Zoro grumbled. Forest glared daggers at Zoro.
"If looks could kill, Zoro would have died a thousand deaths," Usopp said. Zoro turned his attention towards Usopp.
"You're right, for once. I think I pushed the wrong button," Zoro said, before bolting out the door.
"Cobarde! Vuelve aquí! Te voy a matar!" Forest shouted after him, "huyendo de un bebé!". They could hear Zoro's laughter from outside.
"Okay, I think everyone BUT Zoro is lost now. That's a first," Sanji said, pulling out a cigarette. He walked outside, not wanting to smoke around a child, even if she wasn't really a child. She was right now, and that's what mattered.
"Oi!" Zoro yelled to the others, "We've got marines coming our way".
Oh joy Forest thought, this should be fun. Luffy got a big grin on his face. Apparently things were too boring around here for him. As everyone got ready for a fight, Forest came out to watch the fun. Zoro turned to see her walking out.
"Oi, Sanji," he called. Sanji looked over and Zoro motioned towards Forest. Sanji went and snatched up the girl.
"Hey! I want to watch, Sanji," she complained.
"No, you will stay below deck where it's safe," Sanji ordered. Forest pouted as she looked up at him.
"I'm not a baby, Sanji. I'm 20 years old, I can make my own decisions," she argued. Sanji shook his head.
"Until you are back to normal, you will not. If the marines see a little girl on our ship, they will take you. Stay below deck," Sanji said. Forest pouted more and crossed her arms.
"Damn you and your parental instinct," Forest muttered under her breath. Sanji acted like he didn't hear anything as she listened and stomped off below deck. But inside, he couldn't help but feel proud. Now to take care of these marines…
Hop you guys enjoyed the chapter! Here are the translations:
Eres un idiota, hermano. Solo que no te das cuenta - You are an idiot, brother. You just don't realize
Cállate! No soy un idiota! - Shut up! I am not an idiot!
Si, claro - yeah, right
Al menos yo no soy un bebé - At least I'm not a baby
Cobarde! Vuelve aquí! Te voy a matar! - Coward! Get back here! I'll kill you!
huyendo de un bebé! - Running away from a baby!