ONE PIECE
Two Worlds, One Family
A young woman struggling to find her place in the world wakes up to find a bunch of cats in her room...cats that turn out to be the characters from her favourite TV show, One Piece! Bound to each other, whether they like it or not, and trying to figure out a way to find a certain somebody's lost Nakama and get everyone back to their home, what follows is bound to be chaos, friendship, tears, romance - and, adventure! (Kind of a re-write of Straw Cat Pirates).
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
First Point Of Contact
"I haven't seen your little friend around in awhile." Carmilla said, walking down the halls of G-5.
"Hn." Sakazuki replied.
"She comes and goes as she pleases then?" Carmilla guessed.
Sakazuki nodded shortly. "It seems so." He gave her a sidelong glance. "And you? Will you be returning to your own world, if a method of getting you back is discovered?"
Carmilla replied: "Yes. I have work to do back there, and so do my fellow police officers."
"You seem to be handling this remarkably well."
Carmilla didn't respond to that, and instead just stared straight ahead. They continued walking until they reached that same T-Junction in the corridor that Emma had transported herself and Law at.
Carmilla stopped, and so did Sakazuki.
"People who break the law shouldn't be granted the choice of freedom." Carmilla said quietly, not looking at Sakazuki. "I learned that the hard way, back in my own world, and I'll do anything to put them all behind bars, even if it costs me my life. I made a vow, and I won't be going back on it." She looked up at the older man. "You understand why I have to go back?"
He nodded shortly, just as a Marine came sprinting up to them. "Admiral Sakazuki, sir!" He saluted quickly, and Sakazuki returned the salute. "Urgent news from the East Blue - the Straw Hat Pirates were spotted on Mirrorball Island yesterday! Our sources were confirmed by Captain Tashigi!"
Sakazuki fixed the man with a hard glare. "Anything else?"
The Marine gulped, and nodded. "Y-yes, sir! Our sources have also confirmed that they were sighted last week by Captain Nezumi in the Conomi Islands, and Captain Tashigi also stated that she ran into them in Logue Town a few days prior to that!"
Sakazuki's glare hardened some more (if that was even possible) and he said: "Slow down - you sound like a hyperventilating hyena." He had no patience for people like this, but he was going to try and not kill this one.
As the man took a few deep breaths, Carmilla stepped forward. "Soldier," she addressed him, unsure of how else to do so. He looked at her, and blushed slightly - Carmilla was very beautiful. "Were there any reports of strange cats that could be linked to the appearances of the Straw Hats on these islands?"
The man glanced at Sakazuki, and then back at Carmilla, and nodded slowly. "Yes...yes, there was, in fact, Ma'am. In Logue Town, witnesses reported seeing two cats, one red one and one green one, in the same vicinity as the pirates."
"What happened to them?" Carmilla pressed.
"Well," the man seemed to be talking a lot more clearly under Carmilla's cold gaze, as opposed to Sakazuki's much harsher one. "The red cat was seen with them again in Cocoyashi Village - Captain Nezumi stated the the Straw Hats bombarded the Marine's ship to get that red cat back. The green cat was gone, though - there was a green-haired swordsman with them, though."
"Roronoa Zoro..." Sakazuki muttered. "Straw Hat's first-mate..."
Carmilla nodded, and looked back at the other Marine. "What else?"
"Well, there was an orange tabby cat wearing a gold ring around its neck," the man said. "But, later, the cat was gone, and a young woman with orange hair was with them. The Straw Hats called her 'Nami'."
"Their navigator..." Sakazuki nodded. "And, on Mirrorball?"
"Two cats. One was a brown-patched orange tabby, and the other was small and brown and had, uh...antlers and a blue nose...?" The man stammered.
This information did not surprise Sakazuki in the least, and he dismissed the man before turning to Carmilla. "They're gathering their Allies, as Little Death predicted. If what we've just heard is true, then they'll be going after the next four Allies as well. A worst case scenario would be that it's the rest of Straw Hat's crew - there are four of them left, after all."
Carmilla nodded in agreement, unsure as to why she was suddenly being involved in all of this, when all she wanted to do was go home but, for some odd reason, as soon as she'd been put on the case of investigating a girl bringing cats onto a train, she'd suddenly been thrown head-first into a brand new world - literally. A world where pirates still terrorised the seas, and people had strange abilities called 'Devil Fruit Powers'.
Carmilla looked up at Sakazuki (why was he so tall?) and said: "It would be in your Government's best interests to station more Marines on the islands in the East Blue...that's my opinion." She shrugged.
Sakazuki regarded her for a moment, before nodding. "You and I are like-minded." He told her, much to her surprise.
He then turned, without another word, and walked away, and Carmilla walked away in the opposite direction.
Emma awoke with a start, wondering what was happening and why her face was wet - until she realised that it was her Father, standing over her with the squirtie bottle and spraying cold water onto her face in order to wake her up.
"Augh! Okay, alright already, I'm up, I'm up!" Emma complained, scrambling out of bed and trying to shield herself from the water droplets and from the bright light of her ceiling light (which had been replaced by her Father the day before).
"Hurry up!" Bruce snapped. "You have to go shopping with Mum for Ashlee's birthday present, and your phone!"
"Oh...okay then..." Emma blinked, pushing the wet hair out of her eyes. Her face didn't hurt as much as it had the day before...maybe the bruising had gone down?
She checked, and...it had!
Emma got dressed, putting on her usual black - black stockings, a short black pleated skirt, a black t-shirt with the purple words 'Toughen Up, Princess' (something her Dad often said to her) and a black jumper with sleeves long enough to hide the Baby Den-Den Mushi that was snoozing on her wrist - it certainly seemed to sleep a lot. She wondered when it would grow up...maybe she should asked Sumi. After all, she wouldn't be able to wear it as a wrist-watch much longer.
She ran a brush through her hair four times only, and tied it up in a messy ponytail, before checking to make sure that she was all in one piece - Baby Den-Den Mushi (check), compass (check), heart necklace (check), ID bracelet (check)...yup, she was all set.
Emma grabbed her black ankle boots and shoulder bag, and walked out of her room. She walked into the living room, where Bruce was watching the horse-racing on TV, and Lee was checking Face-Book (not only did Lee have Face-Book, but she had more Friends than Emma, too).
When Emma came in, Lee glanced up and looked over her shoulder. "Go and change." She said immediately.
Emma stopped in mid-stride, and turned to face her Mother. "What for?"
"Your stockings have holes in them, and that jumper needs a wash." Lee stated, and Emma stomped angrily back up to her room, cursing because, of course, she couldn't go and buy any new stockings, due to having no money.
She changed into a pair of black jeans and her black long-sleeved turtleneck, before returning to the kitchen - she needed her coffee!
"It's going to be thirty- five today." Lee said, barely looking up from Candy Crush Saga (the most addictive game on Face-Book since Jungle Gems!). "Go and change."
"Mum, for God's sake!"
"Look, do you want to get Ashlee her present or not?!" Lee snapped, and Emma sighed, and returned to her room, putting on her black dress that buttoned all the way up the front. She put on her gladiator sandals (black, and with no heels, of course) and then, with a sad smile, put the Baby Den-Den Mushi into her bag. It didn't seem to mind, and just continued to snooze away, as Emma went back out into the kitchen and finally made her coffee.
But, Lee wasn't finished just yet. Standing up, she said: "Go and do your hair, it looks disgusting."
"But Mum..."
"Now!" Lee snapped, and Emma sighed, and went up to the vanity area, where she brushed her hair to within in inch of tis life, or so she thought.
Upon re-entering the kitchen, Lee was waiting for her with a brush in her hand, and proceeded to brush her daughter's hair.
"Mum, I can do it myself!" Emma complained.
"Then why didn't you?" Lee just shook her head, and brushed the non-existant knots out of her daughter's hair.
Well, there was actually a few knots left, and Emma yelped when the brush tugged at her hair - maybe she wasn't feeling quite as un-sore as she thought she was. "Ow, Mum, stop it!"
Bruce, sitting on the couch, mimicked his daughter's high, squeaky voice, and then scolded her for sounding like a spaz.
Tears stung the backs of Emma's eyes, but she did her best to keep them hidden, as her Mother finally finished with her hair, and Emma told her that she'd go out an wait in the car.
Sitting in Lee's black Hyundai, Emma plugged the USB drive into the port, and flicked to the song I Hate You by 2NE1, knowing that she would have to change the song if her Mother came out, since Lee only liked listening to things in English (she'd hated the Gangam Style craze) and, even then, certain things (like Disturbed) were debatable.
Emma leaned back in her seat, closing her eyes, and recalling her dream. She needed to talk to the others about what she'd heard - their other Allies were in danger. Thinking about it now...hadn't Sakazuki said that it was possible that the other four Allies were Luffy's remaining four crew-mates?
That meant that...it was Sanji, Franky, Brook and Robin!
That made perfect sense to Emma, who suddenly opened her eyes and smiled. She couldn't wait to meet them - flirtatious but kind-hearted Sanji, loud and rock-star-like Franky, the perverted but jolly living-skeleton Brook, and the beautiful and calm Robin...
But...if what Sakazuki and Carmilla had been talking about was true, then Marine forces would be stationed at every other island in the East Blue and, if that was indeed where the other Allies were, then...the Allies might be in danger, and finding them would be even harder.
Dammit! Emma thought, as her Mum came out to the car. Why can't we ever just do things without drawing attention to ourselves?!
She had a sudden vision of Luffy at G-8, walking behind that Marine all ninja-like and cool, and she choked back her laughter.
Lee gave her daughter an odd look, but didn't question this, and just instructed her to change the song or else the radio was going off.
Emma did so, putting on Shut Up, by Simple Plan.
Emma stormed angrily through the shops, trying not to look as if she was ready to kill somebody, or a lot of somebodies.
She was annoyed - Lee had knocked back every single suggestion that Emma had made for a present, until finally just getting fed up with her daughter and telling her to go and find something else, and then call her - they'd gotten her a SIM card first, and Emma had put it into the pink phone she'd gotten in Kuala Lumpur two years ago. She wouldn't let Emma have her card, or her money.
Now, Emma found herself treading that same path she had walked the other week, back over to where that crazy lady's shop had been.
Imagine her surprise when she saw that she shop was set up again, as if nothing had happened!
Emma gasped, and quickened her pace, catching sight of the blue-eyed Asian lady, and not wanting her to disappear again, she fairly ran up to her.
"It's you!" Emma cried, when she'd reached the store, which people seemed to be ignoring. Now, Emma wondered if it might be in another dimension or something, and only she could see it.
The lady looked up at her, and smiled. "Hello again, Emma. How you been?"
"Oh, I wonder," Emma said sarcastically. "Let's see...oh, right! I got transported to another world, which happens nearly every time I fall asleep now! Umm, what else...oh, a bunch of cats appeared in my room that turned out to be really handsome pirates, and now I have to find a Princess and her Allies, whatever that means! And that weird fruit you gave me gave me the powers to do this!" She held her hand out, and a red ribbon wrapped around it, Sailor Moon-style.
The lady looked at her strangely for a second, and then held out a box: "You buy present for cousin?"
Emma blinked. "Why, yes, actually, that's what I...hey, don't change the subject!" She cried. "Who are you?!"
The lady with the blue eyes regarded her for a moment, and then nodded. "I tell you, because you need know...I not from this world."
"Are you from the same world as Twister?" Emma wanted to know.
"Yes, I am. I come from world that is not world - is more like realm, for those that not die." The blue-eyed lady told her.
"You mean...you're an immortal?" Emma was stunned.
"Mmhmm." The blue-eyed lady nodded again, and walked out from behind the counter. She fixed Emma with a steely gaze, but it was gentle all the same. It reminded Emma of her Nanna. "Emma, you have greater purpose than you think. You need find other Allies, and hurry."
"And the Princess too." Emma pointed out. "Let's not forget about her."
The lady nodded sagely. "Yes. Princess will work together with Lower Noble to unite Allies to defeat great evil."
"Wait, there's a Lower Noble, too?" Emma blinked. "Or, is the First Knight one of the Allies? What's a lower Noble?" too much information!
"Lower Noble is Ally." The blue-eyed lady told Emma. "Is sometimes called Knight or Dame in your world. Is considered class of Lower Nobility."
"Oh, well that makes sense...sort of..." Emma thought about this, and a sudden thought struck her. Hey, wait...what if I'm the Lower Noble?! She dismissed the thought immediately. It's probably Luffy seeing as how he's the main character, or it could even be Ace, since he's the Pirate King's son (Pirate Prince?).
The blue-eyed lady was speaking again. "You not need to know where to look, yet. Compass will show you way." She tapped the smooth surface of the compass, which sparkled at her touch. "Find Allies first, then find rest. No need hurry."
"But you just said that..."
"Here." The lady handed the box to Emma. "Take for cousin."
Emma looked suspiciously at the box. "It's not going to transport her to a world of giant, flesh-eating spiders, is it?"
"No, is just normal necklace." The lady promised her.
"Oh, well good, because Ash hates spiders..." Emma tucked the box into her bag, planning on telling her Mother that she'd bought it for herself a few weeks ago, but had decided to give it to Ashlee since she couldn't find anything here. As the blue-eyed lady and her shop began to vanish, Emma suddenly asked her "Wait - what's your name?!"
"Faith."
At home, Emma went down to her room, set down her bag, and took the box out of it, wanting to check it before she showed it to her Mother, but Lee was already on her way down to Emma's room, and so Emma had no choice but to show Lee the necklace without looking at it first.
Wow, that is...the most beautiful thing I have ever seen, and that includes my necklace and compass! Emma stared at the beautiful glass flower necklace. It was silver with dark blue stones that matched the rings that Ashlee wore on her hands. It was absolutely stunning...
"It looks cheap."
Emma nearly dropped the box at Lee's blunt statement, and looked up at her in shock. "Well...I don't think so..."
Lee put her hands on her hips. "I wish you'd told me about this, so I could have talked you out of buying it. How much did it cost you?" She wanted to know.
"Umm...enough..." Emma mumbled. Quick, make something up! like what?! How much would a necklace like this usually cost?!
"How much?"
"...Thirty-five dollars?"
"You spent thirty-five dollars in this?" Lee asked her in disbelief, and then sighed. "Well, it's your money." She stated, and turned and walked out of the room.
"You mean it was my money." Emma mumbled, but Lee heard her.
The blonde-haired woman turned around, and raised an eyebrow. "What was that?" She asked her.
"Nothing." Emma muttered, turning away and gazing at her Luffy doll for comfort.
Lee followed her gaze. "When did you get that?" She asked her.
"A while ago." Emma lied.
"Then why is the price-tag still on it?" Lee demanded to know.
"Because I like leaving the tags on!" Emma snapped, rolling her eyes. "Now, can you please get out of my room so that I can get changed?"
"No, not until you tell me what's wrong with you lately!" Lee retorted.
"Nothing is wrong, except that you keep treating me like a little kid!" Emma told her.
"If you're going to act like a kid and keep being stuffed animals and comic books, then I'll keep treating you like a little kid!" Lee informed her. "How do you ever expect to get anywhere in life, when you look like that," she gestured to her daughter's hair and lack of make-up. "And your room looks like this?" She swept a hand around to the clutter on the shelves and bookcase. It was a mixture of anime, manga, video games, her Nanna's old perfumes, enough earrings to pierce an elephant's ears all along the edges with, paper, drawings and stuffed animals. "What would a boy think if you brought him home to this? Then again, with the way you look now, no boy would ever even look at you!"
Emma swallowed, and tried not to show how much her Mother's words hurt but, in truth, she was so used to it that it just made her go numb. "Mum, I..."
"And, if you keep arguing with me, then you won't be going to Ashlee's tonight." Lee crossed her arms. "You'll have to call her and tell her you can't make it, like Sarah."
Emma's head snapped up. "Nee-San's not coming?" She questioned.
Lee shook her head in disapproval. "No, she and Ben are taking Narmu and Corey out."
"Uh, that's Ngarimu, Mum." Emma pointed out.
"Whatever." Lee rolled her eyes. "I may not approve of your sister's new partner, but at least she's out there. If you had a job..." She turned and left the room, muttering to herself. "Why could I get good daughters?" She wondered.
Emma sunk to her knees on the floor, clutching the box in both hands. "Well, Mum, I'm sorry for not being Ashlee..." She mumbled.
Later that evening, Lee and Bruce both dropped Emma off at her cousin's house.
Lee came in with Emma, to see Ashlee, since she hadn't seen her since just after Christmas.
Emma was wearing her new mauve poncho, over a black top and a pair of black jeans and black ankle boots. Hidden by the poncho were her necklace, compass and Baby Den-Den Mushi.
Ashlee herself answered the door, accompanied by the family's old Cocker Spaniel, Henry, who barked and growled in a very (un)savage way.
"Come in!" Ashlee smiled, letting them both in as she held Henry back. When she let him go, he barked once more, before scampering off.
"Happy birthday, sweetie." Lee said, handing Ashlee the present she had gotten her that day.
"Thank you!" Ashlee smiled. She was a couple of inches taller than Emma, with a darker shade of red hair and bright blue eyes. She was wearing a stripey, Mexican-style top over a pair of tight-fitting blue jeans. Her blue nail polish matched her eyes and the rings she wore. She turned to Emma. "Hello, Missy." She grinned.
"Hello." Emma replied, handing Ashlee the present. "Happy birthday - pensioner." She added.
Ashlee laughed, and nudged Emma playfully. "Oh, I am not that old and you know it! Anyway, you'll be catching up with me soon!"
That's right. Emma realised, as she turned around to say goodbye to her Mother. This year is my twenty-third birthday as well...wow...
"Have fun." Lee smiled at Emma, genuinely. "Don't drink too much." She added, referring to the bottle of red wine that she'd caved in and allowed her daughter to buy.
Emma laughed. "Don't worry Mum, I won't. See ya!" She and Ashlee both waved as Lee walked back out the front, and then Ashlee closed the door. Emma grabbed Ashlee's wrist (where a silver bracelet with a heart-shaped locket dangled). "Ash, wait...umm, there's something I have to tell you."
"What is it?" Ashlee was still smiling. It was hard to believe, but the two girls hadn't really gotten along when they were younger. As kids, Ashlee had been a bossy older sister, and Emma had been a precocious younger sister. As teenagers, Ashlee had been (self-admitedly) a bitch, and Emma had been a shy and insecure mouse. However, it had been revealed that Ashlee's boyfriend had been abusing her, and she'd been struggling at school. Now, she had a new and devoted partner, as well as a University degree and her whole career planned. She was a whole new person!
Emma, meanwhile, was...well, still in Limbo...
Emma shifted uncomfortably. "Umm, well...I kind of...I have this friend..." She stressed, even though she wasn't really sure what to call Ace just yet. "Who I...umm...kind of...invited to come tonight without telling you...is that...okay?"
"Huh?" Ashlee looked surprised. "Oh, yeah, sure, that's fine!" She nodded, as she led Emma towards the kitchen. "What time's she getting here? She...? He...?"
"He." Emma verified, and watched as her cousin's eyes lit up. "His name's Ace, and, well...you're, kind of...the first person in the family that he's going to meet...I haven't introduced him to Mum and Dad yet." As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she wanted to kick herself. Why did she say it like that? It made it sound as if he were her boyfriend, which he wasn't...was he?
Ashlee looked positively gleeful. "Yeah, no, that's not a problem at all." She said.
"Yeah, no?"
Ashlee grinned. "Never mind. Come on. Oh, and just a word of warning - everyone's a bit...boisterous."
"How many girls are here?"
"Just you and me - the others haven't shown up yet." Ashlee responded.
Emma nodded, as they walked into the kitchen to the greeting of: "¡hola!"
Emma and Ashlee exchanged a grin.
"Guys, you remember my cousin Emma, right?"
"Si!"
Ashlee rolled her eyes.
Emma counted four boys in the kitchen, and another three outside. She recognized Ashlee's younger brother Mitchell (who was the same age as Ace, ironically) and a few other people from last year's party. She looked around her. "Hey, where's Peter?"
A boy in a Mexican wrestling mask suddenly jumped out of nowhere, making them all jump.
Ashlee started laughing. "Peter, that thing is insane!" She teased him.
"It's also cutting off my circulation." Peter admitted.
"Quick, take it off!" Somebody said, and a few guys attempted to release Peter from the trap that was the mask.
"Whew." He said, running a hand through his wavy brown hair. "I'm glad that's over."
Ashlee was busy opening her presents. When she opened the one from Emma, she exclaimed happily: "Oh wow, I love it!" She hugged her cousin. "Thanks, Emma! Look, Peter, sapphires!" She held up the necklace, which glittered in the overhead lights.
"Wow." Peter acknowledged the gift with a smile, before turning back to one of his mates. "Oh, wow, Davo, you brought a keg of whisky?!"
"No, I brought two." Davo grinned.
"Marry me!" Peter declared, as the boys started laughing.
Ashlee rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "Wish he'd say that to me." She took Emma's hand. "Come on, want a drink?"
"Sure. Where do you keep your wine glasses?" Emma asked, taking the bottle of Cabernet-Sauvignon out of her bag.
Ashlee laughed. "Emma, you are so dignified!"
"I know."
Ace stood on the deck of the Moby Dick, leaning against the mast. He'd fallen asleep twice, but now he was wide awake, courtesy of a well-aimed bucket of water thrown by Sumi, which would not have been appreciated by a normal person on a slightly chilly night. She was standing there with him, smiling as she held a very large Den-Den Mushi in her arms.
"Three." Sumi said suddenly, and Ace gave her a strange look. "Two. One."
Ba-da-ba-da-ba-da-ba-da. Ba-da-ba-da-ba-da-ba-da.
Sumi grinned, and answered the call. "Moshi-Moshi, Emma-Chan."
"Hiya, Sumi-Chan...how did you know it was me?" Came Emma's voice from the other end of the line.
"Intuition." Sumi replied. "Are you coming to pick up Ace now?"
"Yes. Is he ready to go?"
"I'm ready." Ace replied, still leaning against the mast.
"Okay then, I'll be there soon." Emma promised, and hung up.
So did Sumi, and she began to smile again. "Three. Two. One."
As Emma appeared in a flash of ribbons, Ace asked Sumi: "Why do you feel the need to do that?"
"It's my job, Ace-Kun." She replied, grinning away.
"No, your job is to not be annoying."
"Bit rich coming from you."
"Oh, shut up."
"You!"
Emma walked across the deck towards them, saying: "Konban wa. Ace-Chan, are you ready to leave now? I had to walk out in the middle of a Mexican Drinking Game, so we'd better hurry back before somebody misses me."
"Mexican Drinking Game?" Ace repeated, his eyes lighting up. "Sounds fun!"
"Yeah, well, we'd better not miss out on too much of it, then." Emma told him.
"Sure." Ace replied, just as Whitebeard came up onto the deck.
"Hi, Oyaji." Ace and Sumi said automatically.
"Konban wa, Whitebeard-Sama." Emma bowed her head to him.
"Konban wa." Whitebeard replied in his gravely voice. "You two are leaving now?" He asked Emma and Ace.
"Yup." They replied in unison.
"Very well." Whitebeard said. "Don't stay out too late."
"We won't, Oyaji." Ace replied, smiling. "I'll take care of her." He added, reaching out to take Emma's hand.
She smiled shyly at him.
Whitebeard would never in a million years have said it out-loud, but he was secretly happier than he had been in a long time, seeing Ace happy with a woman. The circumstances that had brought them together may have not intended for the two to fall in love with each other but, looking at them now, Whitebeard thought that Emma and Ace looked good together. They suited each other, and complimented each others perfections and flaws.
And, as they disappeared in a flash of ribbons, Whitebeard had a split-second to look more closely at the two of them and saw, just for that fraction of a second, an older man with black hair and a black beard holding the hand of a woman with strawberry blonde hair.
Whitebeard just shook his head, and smiled.
Emma and Ace appeared around the corner from the cul-de-sac where Ashlee's parents' house was, and they quickly walked back around.
Emma was giving Ace instructions with every step. "Okay, so try not to say too many things in Japanese...err, you know, don't say 'konban wa', say 'good evening' or, better yet, say 'buenos noches'!" She had her hand up with one finger raised, to emphasise her points. "Don't bow, and try to dull down the politeness, and don't use honorifics unless it's with me, and no setting fire to stuff, and try not to get too drunk since you're being introduced to members of my family for the very first time, and..."
Ace stopped her, by putting a finger to her lips. She blushed.
"It'll be fine, Emiko." Ace grinned. "Relax."
She nodded. "Okay, just one last thing." She reached into her bag and, glad that he wasn't wearing his cowboy hat, pulled out a black poncho, which she tugged on over his head. "There. Now you look just like Antonio."
"Antonio?"
"Umm, yeah...we all got to choose Mexican names for tonight." She informed him. "You can be Antonio."
"What's your name?" They had almost reached the fountain at the front of the house.
"I'm Speedy Gonzales, the fastest mouse in all of Mehico." She responded, and both of them started laughing as they reached the front door, which was opened up by Ashlee.
This is it! Emma realised. The moment of truth!
"Hi!" Ashlee greeted them, smiling, as always.
"Good evening, cousin of Emma's." Ace said politely.
Emma face-palmed.
Ashlee started laughing. "You're just as polite as Emma! No wonder you two met! I'm Ashlee." She suddenly tugged Peter into view. "And this is Peter."
"Hey, mate." Peter held out his hand, which Ace shook. "Wow, your hands are warm."
"Yeah, I get that a lot." Ace grinned. "Everyone else is just cold."
Ashlee nodded, grinning. "Yeah, I didn't expect it to be so cold tonight - we were going to go swimming."
Ace and Emma exchanged a glance, and then Emma said: "Oh, well...we couldn't go swimming...anyway..."
"Why not?" Peter asked curiously.
Ashlee nudged him. "Peter! It's probably her...umm...time-of-the-month?" She groaned. Why did I just say that? Stupid jelly-shots...
Emma smiled. "Nah, not mine." She jerked her thumb over at Ace. "It's his."
The four of them were silent for a second, before they all started laughing.
Ashlee opened the door wider. "Come on in - Xóchitl just got here." She added to Emma, who nodded. She quite liked Mitchell's pretty blonde girlfriend, Xóchitl.
They walked into the kitchen, stopping to get Emma's drink and get one for Ace. They then walked out the back.
"¡hola!"
Ace grinned, and raised a hand in greeting.
"Guys, this is Emma's friend, Ace. Okay, Ace," Ashlee began pointing. "This is my baby brother Mitchell,"
"Hey!"
"His girl, Xóchitl. Davo, Justin, Ryan, Phil, Scott..." Ashlee introduced everybody at her party, and then trailed off, realising that she was being stared at. "What?"
"You're supposed to refer to everybody by their Mexican names!" Davo informed her. "Drink, drink, drink!" He ordered her.
Rolling her eyes, Ashlee took a sip of her Midori, and Emma took the opportunity to explain further to Ace: "That's the second part of the drinking game. Just remember: Ryan is Doroteo, Scott is Ignacio, Phil is Pancho, Justin is Toraidio, Davo is Jesus-Ernesto, Peter is Nacho Libre, Mitchell is El Nombre, Xóchitl is Cactus, I'm Speedy Gonzales..."
"Gonzo." Phil corrected her.
"You make it sound like she's a Muppet!" Ashlee scolded, as Emma blushed.
Phil rolled his eyes. "Yeah, whatever...El Sluto."
As Ashlee gaped at the name that she'd had no say in, and the guys laughed, everyone sat down again, and resumed with naming one Mexican thing each, or taking a drink. They quickly learned that Ace had a habit of just forfeiting his turn, and taking a drink, which a few guys started copying. Ace tried not to appear too fascinated with Ashlee's computer that the guys had commandeered, and was soon surfing You-Tube with the guys, looking up...
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU USING MY COMPUTER FOR?!" Ashlee screamed, coming out with a plate of wimpy nachos and another plate of very very spicy nachos which she set down before grabbing Peter by the ear. "What's going to happen to my Recommended videos at the side of the page?!"
"They're going to be showing 'Busty Blonde Beauties' from now on." Peter said, with a straight face.
"I have to use that page for my students!"
Everyone else was laughing, including Emma. The videos hadn't been that bad - she wouldn't have liked Ace watching them if they were! Ace caught her eye across the table (she was sitting in one corner, and he was leaning over Davo's shoulder to see the computer on the other side of the table), and winked.
Emma blushed brilliantly.
Ace mouthed the words 'you okay?' and Emma nodded. Ace gave her the thumbs up.
Ashlee, who was watching this, smiled, and said: "Hey, Emz, come and help me with the jelly shots."
"Yeah, jelly shots!" Somebody yelled.
"You already had twelve!"
"That was Cactus!"
"No it wasn't, it was Eustace!" Xóchitl defended herself.
"Who's Eustace?"
"Drink, drink, drink!"
"Aww..."
Emma followed her cousin into the kitchen (bringing her own glass for a refill, of course) and Ashlee turned around, smiling. "So, tell me - how long have you two been going out?"
Emma blushed some more. "Umm, not long...we kind of met by accident, and it just sort of...clicked...?" She glanced out the kitchen window at Ace, just as he looked up at her. She yelped, and ducked down.
Ashlee laughed, and they heard Ace's laughter, as well.
Ashlee knelt down next to her cousin. "You two are good together - I'm so happy that you finally got a boyfriend!"
"Yeah...now I just have to introduce him to my parents...yay..." Emma said, a bit weakly.
Ashlee gave her a hug. "Thanks for trusting me to be the first family member to meet him...I am the first, aren't I?"
Emma looked her in the eye. "I haven't even told my parents he exists."
"Wow..." The doorbell rang just then, and Ashlee stood up, dragging Emma to her feet. "Can you take the jelly shots out while I get that?"
"Sure." Emma nodded, and picked up the tray. When she carried it outside, she was nearly pounced on, and the shots were all gone by the time she sat down.
"Here," Ace handed her one. "I managed to snag you one, Emiko."
"Thanks." She replied, taking it from him. "Why is there black texta all over your face?"
"The guys drew on me when I fell asleep for ten seconds." He replied.
"That'll teach you, you narcoleptic, you." Emma eyed her jelly shot. "Hey, where's my toothpick?"
"Toothpicks are for pansies!" Peter called.
Emma and Ace laughed, and then Ace linked his wrist with Emma's, and they (somehow) managed to drink their jelly shots, laughing.
"I told Ashlee to spray them with cooking oil." Xóchitl rolled her golden-green eyes, just as Ashlee herself came back outside.
"Hey, I did, but if I'd put too much on there then they would have tasted like cooking oil!" She protested.
"It still would've been good." Justin remarked.
A tall, blonde-haired girl appeared behind Ashlee.
"¡hola!" Everyone called.
The blonde raised an eyebrow. "Hello." She greeted them.
"Guys, you all know Sara, she works at the newspapers - you know, with me." Ashlee stated (which was a bit unnecessary, since Peter, Mitchell, Xóchitl and Davo all worked there as well, and Emma had up until two years before, but her Dad still did, along with his brother, and Ashlee's Father used to own the company).
"You can be Cacti." Davo told her.
Sara looked at him. "Thanks...I think..."
Ace noticed that Emma was looking uncomfortable all of a sudden, but didn't have a chance to ask her what was wrong, as it was suddenly his turn to name something Mexican - the game appeared to be ongoing.
Ace just took a drink of beer (no surprises there) and everyone turned to Emma.
"Perra." She said clearly.
"Which means...?" Scott raised an eyebrow.
"Umm..."
"She's making it up! Drink, drink, drink!"
Ace joined in with the laughter, but noticed that Emma and Sara kept on staring...no, glaring at each other.
Emma stood in the bathroom, with her wrist held up as she talked to Sumi via the Baby Den-Den Mushi.
"What's that, Sumi-Chan? I can hardly hear you!" Emma fairly yelled (luckily, somebody had turned the music up outside).
"I said, can you take care of Ace-Kun tonight?!" Sumi yelled back. There was a lot of noise going on in the background.
"Okay, but why?!"
"Because we're... ... ..."
"You're what?!" She either said that they're plundering the track, or...that they're under attack... "Are you under attack?!"
"Yes! Don't worry, Emma-Chan, Oyaji's got it all under control!"
"Who's attacking you?!" Emma demanded to know.
"I think it's... ... ..."
"It's who?!"
"The Navy!"
"Mine or yours?!"
"Yours!"
"Do you need our help?!"
"No, we'll be fine, Oyaji told me to tell you to... ... ..."
"To what?!"
"To keep Ace-Kun with you until we call! Okay?!"
"Okay! Take care of yourself and Luffy and the others!"
"Okay!"
They hung up, and Emma stared at her wrist, feeling shocked. She then walked back out, and jumped, seeing a pair of yellow eyes staring at her from the darkness of the living room.
Then, the animal attached to the pair of eyes meowed.
"Oh, it's just you, Tom." Emma breathed, recognizing her cousin's tuxedo cat. She automatically went over to pet him. "Good boy..." He stretched his neck out, relishing in the attention...just like Luffy did in cat-mode. Emma giggled.
She then happened to look up, and her smile faded. Outside, Ace was still sitting at the table, only now Sara was sitting next to him. Emma had noticed before that Sara's top left little to be imagined, and the way she was leaning over Ace would certainly have left nothing for the pirate to imagine...
She only realised that she was gripping onto Tom's ear when he hissed half-heartedly at her, and she immediately apologized. "Gomen, gomen..." She said, straightening up and leaving the room. She didn't go out the back, however, she went straight to the front door and walked outside, not really sure where she was going, and just stopping on the driveway, staring up at the house next door which, ironically, was her Mum's sister's old house. She'd spent many special occasions of her childhood in that house...it was a large house with polished floors and floor-to-ceiling windows...those had been happier times, before everything had changed...
"Emiko?" Ace said from behind her, and Emma half-turned, to see him standing on the front porch.
"Oh, umm, Ace-Chan...what are you doing out here?" She asked, embarrassed to be seen spacing out - again!
"I saw you go this way and decided to follow." Ace replied, eyeing her. "I finally managed to pry that other girl off of me." He added casually, hoping to see a reaction. He needed to get this sorted out.
"Oh, yeah, well, she's like that." Emma shrugged nonchalantly. "At least you didn't have to resort to a crow-bar."
"You seem to know a bit about her." Ace pointed out.
Emma sighed. "Yeah...we went to high-school together. She's actually one year younger than me, so she's two years older than you."
"Ah, I see." Ace nodded. "Anything else?"
"Yeah...we used to be friends, but then she ditched me." Emma shrugged. "It's no big deal."
Ace nodded silently. He tried to wipe the texta off his face, and only succeeded in smearing it.
Emma laughed gently. "Here," she said, dipping her hand in the nearby fountain, and washing off the texta, pressing hard against his face to get rid of the black marks, since it was one of those 'permanent' art-liner things. "Just be thankful Nami and I didn't use one of these things the other day." She added, using his poncho to get rid of the last black streak.
"That was you?" Ace gaped at her. "I was wondering who played connect the dots with my freckles!" He wiped the water off his face with his poncho, which he had taken off, to reveal that well-toned body of his. "At least you didn't wash it off my face like you did just then - that hurt!"
Emma grinned, and looked up at him. "Be thankful I didn't use my spit, or whatever it is that Mums do."
"Well, I never knew mine, so I wouldn't know." Ace shrugged, and then he grinned devilishly. "Though, if you did it..."
Emma blushed. "Is that a hint?"
"Maybe." Ace leaned down, and kissed her gently, making her head swim and her heart beat faster.
My second kiss...well, third, but my second one from Ace-Chan! I'm so happy!
That reminded Emma, and she drew back suddenly. "Ace-Chan, there's something that I need to tell you." He noticed her expression, and stood back, waiting. "Sumi-Chan called me. Now, don't freak out, but...the ship's under attack."
"What?!" Ace cried, looking horrified. "By who?! What happened?!"
Emma held up her hands. "Look, I don't know the details, okay? Sumi-Chan just said that your old man's got everything under control, and not to worry - the Navy from this world isn't as strong as the Marines from your world, Ace-Chan." She tentatively reached up, and touched the side of his face. "Okay? Trust Whitebeard-Sama, okay?"
Ace looked a little bit more relaxed, but still sounded stressed as he asked: "What about Luffy?"
"Your brother will be fine." Emma replied firmly. "He survived six levels of Impel Down's Hell before executing a mass break-out from said jail, fighting Rob Lucci at Enies Lobby, fighting Admiral Aokiji, the Aqua Laguna tidal wave, the challenges at Skypiea, nearly getting his head chopped off in Logue Town and fighting the likes of Crocodile, Arlong and Kuro - he'll be fine. The people in this world don't have Devil Fruit powers or sea-stone, and more than half of the pirates onboard the Moby Dick can use Haki, not to mention all those Devil Fruit users. Plus, Luffy's got part of his crew with him, and they will not let him drown, okay?"
Ace nodded, looking at her with a serious expression. "How is it...that you manage to calm me down before I've even gotten upset?"
Emma blinked in surprise, and then looked down. "I dunno...I guess I just have a lot of faith in you guys. I believe you can do it. The World Government in your world won't win, and we'll get through whatever my Government throws at you, okay? As my Nanna used to say, 'we'll take it one day at a time'."
Ace smiled, and hugged her tightly. "Okay." He whispered in her ear: "I trust your judgement."
"Don't trust me." She responded. "Trust your family."
"You are my family." He replied, just as she accidentally leaned against her compass, and suddenly found herself holding Ace as a cat.
They looked at each other for a moment, before laughing.
When Emma came back in, she was holding the black cat in his poncho protectively in her arms, and found her cousins, saying: "I just rang Mum to come and pick me up, okay?"
"Okay." Mitchell replied. "Where's...?"
"He had to go home." Emma explained, noticing that Ashlee was staring at her strangely. "His friends picked him up." She added. "It was an emergency."
Ashlee nodded. "Right, so...when are you going to introduce him to your parents?"
"Next week sometime, depending on how things go." Emma replied confidently.
"Good, because," and, here, Ashlee pointed a finger at the camera set up in the corner of the room. "My parents set up the security camera to monitor the house while they're on their cruise, in case somebody breaks in again when they're not home. They've been watching us this entire time."
Emma nearly had a heart attack.
That night, Ashlee lay in her bed, unable to sleep.
I...I've just seen something amazing... She realised, finally caving in and going over to her computer. She recalled standing out there on the balcony, and listening to her cousin talk to her boyfriend. Ashlee had heard some pretty strange stuff, and hadn't believed a word of it...until Ace had transformed into a cat.
Now, Ashlee sat down at her computer, and typed in: Ace Pirate.
When the search came up, she clicked on the first link and, playing with the sapphire flower necklace she now had around her neck, began to read...
Georgia tossed and turned that night, trying to sleep, but unable to due to all of the worries that she now had.
What was going on?
Had they found that ship yet and, if so, had they found Carmilla?
What would happen if they hadn't? If they didn't?
Georgia's eyes snapped open when she saw a faint red light, and saw that somebody was sitting at the foot of her bed. She gasped. "Who are...?"
The little girl held up her scythe (which scared the Hell out of Georgia, who lapsed into silence) and stated: "My name is Little Death. I can't take you to your sister, but I know someone who can." She moved her scythe, drawing a childish picture in red light in the air, whilst Georgia watched her in shock. The picture then morphed into a holographic image of Emma, sitting there, and surrounded by people. Little Death pointed her scythe at the necklace that was now visible around Emma's neck, as her poncho had slipped down a little bit. "See that necklace? That's your ticket to going to the world where Carmilla is."
"And...what world is that?" Georgia asked nervously, hoping that it wouldn't be Hell or somewhere like that.
Little Death's gaze was calm, but her eyes were burning. "A world that shouldn't even exist."
Author's Notes:
. I Hate You, by 2NE1. youtu .be / NB5jyY D2WEw
. Ngarimu's name is Maori. It's pronounced 'na-da-mu'.
. Xóchitl's name is Aztec. It's pronounced 'so-jii'.
. Perra = bitch, in Spanish.
Cocoa Liddell - Ace is always amazing! I'm glad you thought that Emma was awesome, and that the previous chapter was your favourite! ^^
MsWildLuck - heh, that's one way to hold back a snake! XD And, as for Law and Emma, you'll just have to wait and see.
KaiF . Raphaella - thanks for your continued support! :)
Mailumia - thank you so very much! It makes me happy to know that you appreciate my story. And, oh my God, yes, I also get depressed by thinking of Ace's death! T_T It's amazing how a manga/anime can have such an effect on people! Oda-Sensei is still a better writer than me, but I'll keep on trying! ^^
Mugiwara Wolf Spirite - whaa, why do you people keep tormenting me with threats of Boa Hancock's wrath?! She's scary... *Hides behind mongoose* Anyways, I'm very glad to hear that my story has made your day better with some more AcexEmma action (Acma? Emmace?). Thank you for looking at my drawings! I did a part two of the second lot (including Usopp and Chopper) but I advise against looking at it until the story progresses further. And you saw NOTHING! There was no breaking of the fourth-wall ANYWHERE! My magic sparklefingers of swiftness said so! :D