Chapter 11

Apis

Sorry for the super-long wait. The contest ended and my imagination cauldron needed a vacation from writing One Piece. Here're the results of the contest of Fullmetal Pirate.

3rd Place: Original Story
4th: Comedy

If you want to see the results of my other fics in the contest, check them out on my bio.

BTW: If any of you are wondering, Erin's seasickness will be a running gag until Drum Island.

I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist and One Piece.


It was two days since Lougetown and both Erin and Luffy were getting impatient on their way to the Grand Line. For Luffy, his reasoning was finding One Piece. For Erin, it was to get onto some dry land and calm her queasy stomach. No matter how many seasick pills she took, the Fullmetal Alchemist continued to be nauseous on the sea.

"Nami! Shouldn't we reach the Grand Line, soon?" Luffy called out to the navigator.

Annoyed, Nami answered the captain.

"What do ya think? We just left Lougetown two days ago. It'll take some time before we get there. Just be patient."

Luffy grinned.

"'K."

Sanji sighed as he took in the open sea air.

"Ah. Feel that sunshine. With weather like this it seems like that storm we had was just a bad dream."

"Tell that to my stomach. I just hope Dr. Marcoh's research notes get here before we get to the Grand Line." Erin groaned as she continued to hang herself over the side of the ship.

Winry sighed at her friend's predicament and groaned herself.

"I can't believe you, Erin. We've been on the sea for a couple of days, maybe two weeks if you count our trip to Cocoyashi Village, and you're still seasick."

Erin yelled at her mechanic.

"IT'S NOT LIKE I'VE PLANNED THIS, WINRY!"

As the two girls argued, Alphonse watched the sea until something caught his proverbial eyes. A flock of seagulls in one location. Suspicious, he called up to Ussop.

"Ussop! What can you see in the west?"

Ussop took a look and agreed that something strange was happening.

"Hey! Al and I see a flock of birds starboard!"

Luffy looked up to the sniper.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. And they're surrounding something. I can't make it out exactly, but it's big. I wonder what it is?"

"Maybe it's a fish." Luffy answered, looking off in the direction of the gulls.

Ussop began to use his new goggles to try and get a better look.

"Maybe. Or…a small boat? Or a fish? I don't know."

Sanji decided to add his thoughts in.

"I've heard that it's common for birds to flock above fish and even trail them."

"It is?" Luffy asked, getting that familiar grin we all know.

"Yeah. That's right. Sounds like lunch to me."

Luffy then stood up.

"All right!" He then reeled back his arm. "GUM-GUM…." Then released it out to the mass in front of him. "…GRAB!"

Ussop and Sanji were impressed.

"Whoa! That's a stretch!"

"It never gets old."

As Luffy's hand grabbed the distant object, Erin weakly asked a question.

"You know there's a really good chance of that fish being rotten, right?"

Unfortunately, her question didn't get noticed as Luffy called out.

"I've caught it!"

He then steadied his arm as he reeled his catch in.

"Come here! It seems pretty big!"

To the alchemist's surprise, Nami praised the captain.

"Nice one, Luffy!"

But then, Sanji noticed something.

"Hey. You're reeling it in fast. Dial it down a little!"

Seeing this coming, both Erin and Sanji ducked just in time as the object struck a sleeping Zoro, sending him overboard.

"Oh. Sorry about that." Luffy spoke as if Zoro was there.

Sanji and Erin, despite her stomach, both yelled at Luffy.

"YOU DUMBASS!"

Alphonse got to work at helping Zoro out of the water while the alchemist, the navigator, the cook, and the captain gathered around the object that Luffy brought in from the sea. To the others disappointment, the object was not a fish, alive or dead. It was a little girl no older than eight as Erin guessed. She was dressed in a yellow dress with a lilac shirt underneath and she wore a strange white hat on her blond, braided head. She was out cold; though it was uncertain if was from being out at sea for a time or striking Zoro.

"Huh. That's the strangest looking fish I've ever seen." Sanji spoke.

Erin glanced irritably at the chef.

"She's not a fish, you moron. She's a little girl."

"Huh. A fish person? Where's her webbing?" Luffy asked.

"She's not a fish person, you idiot. She's just a little kid." Ussop told the captain in annoyance.

"Why would someone leave a child out in the middle of the ocean? It makes no sense." Nami spoke.

Erin rolled her eyes and answered the navigator.

"She's most likely a survivor of a shipwreck caused by the storm."

After Zoro was brought back up on deck, Al looked over his sister and saw the girl.

"Sister. I think she's dehydrated."

Although not a doctor, Winry carefully opened the child's mouth and examined it.

"You're right, Al. Her throat's dry as a bone."

The automail mechanic then looked up to the younger of the Elric's.

"Al. Can you carry her to the galley?"

She then turned her attention to Sanji.

"Better make a meal for her, Sanji."

Then to Ussop.

"Can you or Nami help me? Erin's out of commission, after all."

"I HEARD THAT, WINRY!" Erin yelled before heaving again.

Ussop and Nami both agreed and aided the automail mechanic.

"Hey. What can I do, Winry?" Luffy asked the mechanic.

Bluntly, Winry spoke.

"You're going to be having your hands full running away from an angry swordsman with green hair."

Sure enough, once Zoro had recovered, he chased Luffy all around the Merry to get back at him.


Sometime later…

The crew of the Going Merry had gathered in the galley, continuing to keep an eye on the mysterious girl. Ussop, Nami, and Winry took turns placing cool rags on the child's forehead. Luffy had failed to escape Zoro's wrath and received a beating for his earlier stunt. Erin took more of her seasickness medication with Alphonse manning the helm, although that didn't stop him from coming into the galley to see if the child had made any progress.

It was the smell of Sanji's delicious cooking that brought the girl back from her unconscious state, but she sat up too fast and smacked her forehead on Ussop's chin, who was replacing her rag at the time. Holding her head, the girl screamed.

"That hurt~!"

The sound of her voice caught the attention of the crew.

"You're awake! That was quicker than we expected." Nami spoke, gesturing to Winry and herself.

Winry also replied with a kind smile.

"Don't worry. You're alright now."

As the girl began to take in her surroundings, Sanji spoke, not taking his eyes off his cooking.

"Nothing that some grub won't cure. I'm cooking some soup if you're hungry."

The girl then whispered to herself.

"Lucky!"

Nami spoke up, gesturing to Winry again.

"My friend here guessed that you were shipwrecked. You are lucky. What's your name?"

The girl was confused for a moment before narrowing her eyes, clearly not trusting the people she was around.

"Hmph! Before asking people questions, it's polite to give them your name first."

Erin muttered to herself in annoyance.

"Hmph! That's thanks she gives to the people that saved her from being fish food?"

Not hearing the Fullmetal Alchemist, Nami smirked.

"Good point. I'm Nami."

She then pointed to Sanji.

"The chef cooking that delicious soup is Sanji."

Sanji turned around and said 'hi' before Nami pointed to Zoro.

"That's Zoro. Despite his scowl, he's actually a good guy."

"Hmph! Shut up." Zoro replied to Nami, who then pointed to Ussop.

"And you've already met the guy who's unconscious on the floor. That's Ussop."

The navigator then pointed to Winry and Erin.

"And those two are two of the three newest members of our crew. The tall girl's Winry and the short girl's Erin."

A vein appeared on the shorter girl's forehead as she yelled at Nami.

"HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU? DON'T CALL ME SMALL!"

Seeing the girl flinch at Erin's yelling, Winry spoke up.

"Don't mind her. She hates being called 'short,' but she's a nice girl too. Minding the helm is her younger brother, Alphonse. But to tell you, don't let his appearance fool you. Although he may look scary on the outside, Al's a pretty sweet kid on the inside."

Finally, Luffy introduced himself with the same idiotic grin that his crew has known him for.

"I'm Luffy. And I'm the captain of this pirate crew."

At the words 'pirate crew', the girl screamed in shock.

"What?! Pirates!?"

Clearly not seeing the girl's negative reaction, Luffy spoke.

"Yep. And we're on our way to the Grand Line."

The girl just froze in fear, the majority of the crew not understanding her reaction.

"What's wrong?" Nami asked.

"You ok?" asked Luffy.

Zoro, who had been quiet most of the time, spoke to his crewmates.

"So what are we supposed to do with her?"

Confused, Luffy answered.

"Uhh…I'm not sure. I'll have to think it over. I can deal with this tomorrow."

Just then, the girl passed out. Alarmed, Nami ran over to check on her.

"What happened?"

One of the two people in the galley who noticed this behavior, Winry sighed before she began to scold the crew.

"What's in those heads of yours? It's obvious she's not too happy to hear she's aboard a pirate ship. She just fainted from shock, that's all."

"Really? How could you tell, Winry?" Luffy asked.

Placing her hands on her hips, the automail mechanic turned to her captain.

"It was obvious because of how she reacted. Screaming words? Frozen in fear? I can't believe none of you noticed that."

"I noticed. I just didn't say anything." Erin muttered to herself again.


Later that night…

Hours later, everyone was asleep in bed for the night. Well, except for two. Alphonse, for obvious reasons, and the little girl in the galley. After recovering from her fainting spell, she huddled next to the wall as she thought to herself in fright.

"Why me? This isn't fair! It is wrong for so many bad things to happen all to one person! And after all I've been through! I survived escaping the Marines only to get picked up by a pirate ship?"

As she thought that, she pictured a more menacing version of the Straw Hats out of fear.

"It isn't funny!"

The sudden growling of her stomach caught her attention from her thoughts before she again thought to herself.

"And to top it off, I'm starving."

Carrying the blanket like a cloak, the girl got up from her bed and began to walk to the fridge. But as she got close, there was a sudden sensation touching her leg and something came down and SNAP! The girl, thinking it was for her, grabbed her head and bent down, waiting for the impending blow. But it never came.

Instead, she sensed light come and she dared herself to open her eyes. The scene before was completely odd. On the floor was a giant mousetrap. And in the trap…Luffy, who was struggling to get out as the person who turned on the light, Sanji, spoke in annoyance.

"How many times? Luffy. This always ends the same way? You never learn, do you?"

He then took notice of the girl by the fridge and spoke.

"What are you doing there?"

The girl chuckled nervously.

Minutes later, the three of them were at the table, Luffy chowing down on a piece of meat like a pig. Again, Sanji sighed in exasperation.

"I would've made you something to eat, Luffy. Just stop trying to take food without asking first."

"But I'm hungry!" Luffy complained as he continued to stuff food into his maw.

The sound of the little girl's stomach caught the chef's attention as the girl blushed in embarrassment.

"What's wrong? You hungry too?"

The girl looked away, trying to deny his accusation.

"You skipped dinner and I know you skipped lunch. What is this? A hunger strike? You think the big, bad, pirates are gonna poison your food, is that it?"

The girl shook her head in denial. After a moment of silence, Sanji spoke again.

"If you just sit there like that, you know he's gonna finish everything."

Hearing this, Luffy reached for a bowl of soup and spoke.

"That's ok. More for me."

Had it with her hunger, the girl grabbed the soup first and shouted as she drank the soup.

"Get back!"

After drinking the soup down, the girl was amazed at how good Sanji's cooking was.

"Amazing!"

Luffy grinned and spoke. "

Yeah, I know. Was there any doubt? I picked Sanji personally."

Sanji took a bow with the compliments on his cooking as the girl spoke again, this time with less fear in her.

"I've never had anything this good."

Suddenly, Nami's voice was heard as she, Ussop, and Zoro were leaning by the door.

"You're finally smiling."

Their sudden appearance caught the trio by surprise.

"Nami." Sanji spoke.

Seeing Luffy, Nami began to scold him.

"Luffy! Are you eating again?"

"What's wrong? I didn't have much lunch." Luffy answered.

Ussop laughed. "Are you kidding? You ate two pots!" But Luffy's response was "I don't remember."

Nami then approached the girl with friendly eyes as she spoke.

"You poor thing. Did you really think we were evil?"

"Well…I guess." The girl admitted.

"Well, you were alone. So that's a common sentiment these days. We're getting used to it."

"You're not gonna sell me off?" The girl asked.

Ussop answered in surprise.

"No way!"

Zoro decided to have a bit of fun and spoke to Ussop.

"You know, you do have an evil look on your face."

But Ussop pulled the swordsman's cheek as he spoke.

"You're the expert on evil looks."

As the sniper and the swordsman began to fight, Nami groaned.

"Why are they such morons?"

The girl gave a nervous laugh as Sanji spoke to her again.

"We still have plenty more to eat, mademoiselle."

"He's right. And if you stick around, you'll see that these pirates are more friendly and fun instead of scary. I promise. Our three newest members are going through the same thing." Nami answered.

With a smile, the little girl shouted out.

"More, please."

"As you wish." Sanji replied.

"Me too!" Luffy yelled.

"Get your own, Luffy!" Sanji yelled back at the captain.

"I already tried." The captain complained.

As the girl waited, she realized that there were some members missing. Looking back to Nami, the girl asked her question.

"Where are the others? The…new members, I mean."

Realizing who the girl meant, Nami answered her as she, too, sat down.

"Winry and Erin are down in the girl's cabin, sleeping, and Al is manning the helm."

The girl was surprised that that three new members were either asleep or doing some work. She wondered what the three newcomers were like.


The Following Morning…

The next morning, Erin and Winry came up to the deck late, as usual. While Winry yawned, Erin headed to the railing and continued her new ritual on the sea.

"Ugh. Will this ever stop?" The Fullmetal Alchemist complained.

With her friend being seasick everyday ever since they joined the crew, Winry began to worry about Erin.

"I don't know. Maybe we should find you a doctor on the next civilized island we come to."

Erin didn't protest as she continued to lean on the railing. Looking to the helm, Winry waved to Al, who waved back.

Just then, Nami came from the galley and waved the Amestrians over.

"Hey, guys. Come inside. The girl's awake now."

Hearing this, the trio headed into the galley, where Sanji was placing some plates and silverware in the sink and turning on the faucet so that they'd get clean. Seeing the girl no longer apprehensive than the night before, Winry spoke with a smile.

"I see you look chipper. How are you doing?"

The girl nodded at the mechanic and spoke.

"A lot better, thank-!"

But her words never came out as she caught sight of the hulking suit of armor coming inside.

Seeing the kid shiver in fear, Erin looked to her brother before speaking to the girl.

"This is my little brother, Alphonse. Like Winry said last night, don't let his appearance fool you."

"She's right. Al may look scary, but he's a real sweetheart as long as I've known him." Nami added in.

Al 'blushed' as he rubbed the back of his helmet in embarrassment.

"Th-thank you, Nami."

Nami then introduced the girl to the three Amestrians, having learned it over breakfast.

"And guys. This is Apis."

After the final introduction, the crew and the girl sat around the galley and Nami was the first to speak.

"So what's your story? Why were you adrift at sea? Were you stranded or was someone after you?"

Apis answered the Navigator.

"I escaped from a marine ship. They were holding me prisoner."

"A marine ship?" Ussop asked in surprise as Apis continued.

"I got away from there three nights ago."

"Three nights ago? That was during the storm. Your little boat didn't stand a chance." Nami deduced.

Zoro then asked a rather insensitive question.

"How'd you get in trouble in the first place? They've had to have held you prisoner for a reason. What could you have possibly done for a little girl to get captured by the marines? Everyone knows they're twits and I still can't imagine them labeling you an enemy. What'd you do?"

The girl looked down and struggled with her words.

"Well… I…. um…"

"Hey. Are you hiding something?" Erin asked.

Apis panicked.

"No! It's nothing like that! You have to believe me! I'm innocent. But still…I can't talk about it."

"You can't tell us?" Ussop asked.

Sanji intervened.

"Easy. What's the big deal? She must have her reasons. If she doesn't want to say, then we shouldn't press her."

Winry nodded.

"I agree."

"Me too. But it would be helpful if you can tell us where you're from." Nami spoke.

Apis answered in surprise.

"I…. um… It's a place called 'Warship Island.'"

"Warship Island?" Nami asked in surprise.

"Do you know it?" Ussop asked the Navigator as she reached for a map.

"No. But it should be labeled on the map."

"Odd name. Why's it called 'Warship Island?'?" Luffy asked.

Apis answered.

"Well, because the shape of the island looks exactly like a warship."

Luffy grinned.

"Heh. I like it."

Soon after, Nami found the island and pointed to it on the map.

"Look!"

Seeing where she was pointing to, Ussop spoke.

"Huh. It's so close to the Grand Line."

Nami then pointed to a different location on the map.

"We're here, so the distance between here and the island is reasonable. What do you want to do, Apis? We can take you back to your island. We're heading for the Grand Line, but it's no problem for us to drop you off."

Apis remained silent for a moment before speaking.

"Thank you. You were all so nice to save me and I feel bad for having you go out of your way. But I wanna go home more than anything! I'm sorry. I'm being selfish. Maybe you can hand me over to a ship that's heading west on the way to the Grand Line. I'm sure I can handle things on my own from there."

But Nami spoke differently.

"Absolutely not. There's no way! A pirate ship can't get close to another vessel without them attacking in blind fear."

Apis lowered her head.

"Yeah. You're right."

"But still, we're not on anyone's time table other than our own. And Warship Island isn't that far off. So we can do it." Winry spoke.

This surprised Apis as she looked up.

"What?"

Nami then spoke with Luffy.

"Well, I'm fine with this, either way. What about you, dear captain?"

Luffy grinned.

"Sure. Sounds great to me."

"It's close to where we are going." Ussop answered.

"I know. And the island looks like a warship." Luffy answered him.

Sanji then spoke. "I think that's a yes."

Apis couldn't help but smile as she spoke.

"Really? You don't mind changing course and taking me back home?"

"Nope." Luffy answered, causing the girl the jump for joy, thanking the crew with much enthusiasm.

Despite her seasickness, Erin smirked at her younger brother and old friend.

"Looks like we're taking a detour. And one on land, too."

Al gave a soft laugh at his sister's eagerness to plant her feet on dry land again. He was glad Luffy allowed the detour despite his own eagerness to find the mysterious treasure One Piece. He soon started to wonder what exactly was in his and his sister's future with this crew.

But minutes later, as it look like things were going to go smoothly, Ussop yelled from the seagull rimmed Crow's Nest.

"We've got company! And just our luck! We're in deep trouble! It's the marines!"

"Marines?" Nami asked from the deck.

"And we're not just talking about one or two ships either!"

Hearing this, Erin ran over to the other railing and saw a fleet of ships heading their way.

"He's right!" Nami, joining the Fullmetal Alchemist, spoke a question.

"Why would the marines dispatch an entire fleet to this area?"

"What's going on?" Luffy asked as he joined his friends.

Seeing the ships, Luffy spoke.

"Are they after the bounty on my head?"

"They wouldn't send this many just for you." Nami answered.

"Maybe the marines feel that they need an entire fleet to capture me. I am kinda amazing."

"Shut up! This isn't a joke!" Erin yelled at Luffy.

Apis, seeing the ships, recognized them and began to walk backwards, catching Sanji's eye.

"What's wrong with you?"

Apis answered.

"Those ships belong to Branch 8! They're the ones I escaped from! What am I gonna do?!"

The crew remained silent at this revelation until Ussop screamed.

"They're firing at us!"

The cannonballs pierced the water around the ship as the crew and their passenger held on tight to keep their holding. The head of the marine ships then called out to them.

"Attention pirates! You have trespassed into restricted waters and are hereby ordered to stop and surrender!"

"There's no way we're gonna stop for marines!" Ussop exclaimed as he struggled to regain himself onto the ship.

"How'd you wanna handle this? 'Cause I wanna fight them." Zoro spoke.

"Then I say let's fight." Luffy answered.

"You're crazy!" Ussop called out to the pair.

"Why must we always fight against impossible odds?"

As Ussop berated the captain and the swordsman, Sanji spoke to Apis.

"Apis. Go down to the cabin with Winry and the Elric's."

"Ok." The girl answered.

But before she could go and collect the Amestrians, she turned to find the seagull on the orchard. After moments of silence and staring at them, she heard Sanji speak.

"What's wrong?"

"A wind's coming. He says it's a strong one." Apis whispered.

Nami hearing this, look to the sky and began to give orders.

"Zoro! Man the sails! Ussop, Al, Sanji! Right rudder full!"

"Huh?"

"Get going!"

The sniper, the cook, and the armor obeyed and headed to the helm as Luffy asked Nami a question.

"Hey, Nami. What's happening?"

"A gust is coming. We'll ride it out and move on. If we try to take out the fleet head on, we'll end up losing, no matter how well we fight." Nami answered.

Suddenly, a fierce wind filled the sails of the Going Merry and sent it speeding across the water, evading the marines. While Luffy and the others enjoyed the ride, Erin was holding tight to both the railing and whatever meal was still in her stomach.

Eventually, the ship slowed down as the gale died, leaving no sign of the marines that were chasing them. Ussop jumped for joy.

"Ha-ha! You see? Even Captain Ussop can scare a marine fleet away!"

"Perfect! Another triumph performed by our expert navigator!" Luffy called out.

"Well done, Nami. Incredible how you detected that wind before it hit." Sanji flirted.

But as the others were cheering, both Zoro and Erin noticed something was up. Especially Erin, as her seasickness suddenly left her.

Seeing the apprehensive looks on both State Alchemist and swordsman, Nami spoke.

"What's wrong, you two?" Erin answered.

"Nami. Did you by chance notice how we're not moving at all? And my seasickness has stopped."

Noticing this, Nami looked at the sail and saw that it was completely still. Not even a measly draft moved it. It was then Nami realized why the marines never chased them. She screamed.

Hearing their navigator, the crew looked at Nami.

"Nami? You ok?" Luffy asked.

Panicked, Nami shrieked.

"We're screwed! WE'VE ENTERED THE CALM BELT!


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