"Having fun?" Law leaned on the railing next to me. I was watching the party on the deck of the sub. It was my birthday party to be exact. By the look of all the decorations, alcohol, and food, the crew had been planing the event for a long time. Shanks added more food, alcohol, and people, making the celebration even more chaotic.
"I think I might change my mind about celebrating my birthday," I laughed.
"They'll all be hung over in the morning and useless," Law shook his head.
"You won't be. Neither will I. I bet Shanks has a few lookouts on his ship too."
"You trust Shanks." It was not a question but his tone implied that I was to tell him why.
"I need skin to skin contact for my powers to work."
"What does that have to do with Shanks?"
"Not many people want to touch someone who can see their deepest, darkest secrets and nightmares. I don't remember touching anyone except my mother before I was five." I jumped up to sit on the rail. "It seems like something small, but to a child," I shook my head.
"They feared you," Law surmised. I nodded. "Shanks did not."
"I spent two months on that ship with his crew while they took me away from Ciarda to my Father. They were the first people that were not afraid to touch me." That treated me like I was human.
"Your father?"
"I say bad things about him and I wouldn't go out of my way to see him, but I respect him. When he learned of my power, he helped me learn how to control it. How to fight with it."
"Your father sounds like a smart man." This was a large complement coming from Law.
"He is one of the most honorable men I know."
"What's wrong?" I realized that I was frowning.
"I cant see him not taking revenge for my mother's death." He loved her. Even as a child I could see that.
"Your parents were not married," Law hinted.
"Yes, but he loved her. Her portrait hangs in the house." I watched him mourn her death.
"You can always visit him and ask," Law grinned. I glared at him. "Speaking of always, where do you want your present?" Law asked.
"Present?"
"Yes. A tattoo of out Jolly Rodger. Where do you want it?"
"A tattoo?" What would I do with one?
"You've been with us a year, it is about time you got one."
"Is this you being possessive again? Like when you kiss me in front of other men?" Law widened his eyes in mock innocence.
"I just thought you might like a permanent mark to connect you with the crew. Proof you are our nakama."
"I'll think about it when I'm not buzzed," I promised. I was already talking more than usual. I hardly ever talked about Father.
"They got you to drink?" Law smirked, most likely remembering that my morals disappeared when I drank.
"Yassop and Shachi dragged me into a drinking game. I'm still coherent though." One of the musicians on Shanks's crew started playing.
"Rahzel-chan! Give us a dance!" I was dragged away from the railing and spun into the crowd. Friend after friend spun me around as the music continued. I laughed with them, enjoying the movement and the music.
My worries, who issued the Buster Call, who killed Kai, where Elli was, what Alexi was feeling, how Sou and Rosie were, the reputation of my business, even the dangers of the Grand Line, they could all wait a few hours. The crew was in front of me now.
...
"Are you sure?" Law asked his butterfly for the sixth time.
"Yes. On the inside of my left wrist." She was sitting on a bed in the infirmary waiting for Law to give her her birthday present. Her new bracelet jingled slightly on her right wrist.
"Why?" Law asked. "You can't move a tattoo," he defended when Lia glared at him.
"I want to be able to see it," she told him. When he continued to stare at her, she unknowingly gave him puppy eyes and he began his work.
"We were talking about your father last night." Law broke the silence after a few minutes.
"We were," Lia agreed slowly. "What does that have to do with a tattoo?"
"I thought I would take your mind off the pain."
"As a byproduct. If you have a question you can ask it."
"How were your parents involved with Shanks?" Of course it came down to her friendly relationship with a powerful pirate. To Lia, Law had a right to know. It was part of evaluating a threat. How close was she to Shanks? What is the probability of betrayal? How much could she get away with?
"I don't know." Lia shrugged with one shoulder, careful to keep her left arm still. "I never heard the story of how they met. I only heard Shanks tease Father about sparring or something."
"Someone with as much curiosity as you never asked?" Law was genuinely surprised.
"My Father and I don't communicate very well."
"You communicate with Shanks."
"Shanks is not my Father. Remember the feeling right before Shanks hit me? That is what it feels like when my Father walks into a room. Needless to say I didn't sit on his lap and ask for story time."
Law waited a moment before he spoke again. "It sounds like we will run into your friend soon." Lia knew who he was speaking of.
"We should find Elli after the next island. Where are we going to now?"
"Ferro Island."
"I've been there once. I only spent a day there though. I hated it." Lia grimaced at the memory.
"We should be able to acquire sub parts there. Not every island sells what we need."
"If it is made of metal, you'll find it on Ferro. Know what else you find? Lightning. Lots of it."
"The probability of being struck by lightning-"
"Is seventy five percent in Ferro. And that is the probability that you will be struck once in a life time."
"How do they live?"
"The inhabitants have adapted to the electricity. Their bodies can take it."
Law thought as he worked. They needed a way around being struck. Or they could get used to it.
"How do they adapt?" Law asked.
"I don't know. The lightning moves in storms though. That's how I avoided them." Lia watched Law work. He moved quickly, almost gracefully. He knew what he was doing and he was confident in his movements. "What is the story behind this Jolly Rodger?"
Law stopped.
"What do you mean?" he asked before resuming his work.
"Who designed it? What is the meaning of it?"
"Why do you want to know?"
"I'm going to see it everyday for the rest of my life."
"You should have asked before you allowed me to mark you with it." Law's voice was colder now. He wanted to be away from this subject.
"It already has a meaning for me. What I want to know is what it means for you."
"Why does it matter?"
"I don't know, but it matters more now that you don't want to tell me," Lia grinned.
"Why your left wrist? Why not somewhere else?" Law demanded.
"Its easy to conceal or display and I was originally left handed." Lia watched as Law finished his work. The mark was beautiful. It did not matter what other meaning it held. Law told her the night before that it was proof that she was nakama, not just to Law, but to the whole crew. Lia smiled. "It doesn't matter," she told Law as he wrapped her wrist.
"Sudden change of heart?" he did not meet her eyes. He was still guarded against her questions.
"It just hit me." She was grinning now. "It is like you told me last night, the tattoo is proof that we are nakama."
Law smiled briefly and then began a ten minute lecture on how to care for her new ink until it was healed.
...
So... this part was really short but I couldn't take it out because I feel it is important. The mood felt off to me but I had no idea how to fix it. Again, it was really short so, SURPRISE! You get a couple of flashbacks! Enjoy!
Flashback 1
Smoke billowed onto the sky behind me. I could barely see the flames anymore. The smoke burned my eyes and made it hard to breath. Mother told me to run and not to stop. She said that I would live before the fire swallowed her. Tears spilled out and I tried to wipe them away, but the ash covering my hands just made my eyes sting more.
"Hey there," A man with red hair smiled at me. There were big men following him. I took a few steps back. "Whoa there, I'm a friend of you mom's," he grinned and held out a hand. "I'm Shanks." I took it slowly. Not many people wanted to touch me.
"Looks just like Ruby," one of the men commented.
"Rahzellia right?" Shanks asked me. I nodded.
"Let's call her Rahzellia-chan!" another suggested.
"Like it?" Shanks grinned. He didn't stop smiling. My mother was dead, there was a fire! Why was he happy? I frowned at him. I could not find my voice. "Well sorry if you don't. These guys do anything once they decide on it." Shanks reached out and picked me up. He started walking away from the fire.
I looked back. I wanted to struggle. I wanted to run back. I knew it would not do any good though. He carried me to the beach where a huge ship was waiting. It flew a pirate flag. I was carried on board. Shanks put me down and started calling out orders. The men who stopped to stare at me previously started to run around the ship, pulling ropes and doing other things to make the ship move. Shanks wanted away from the island as soon as possible.
"We need to get you a bath and something else to wear. You're pretty small, finding clothes will get interesting." In the end I was given a shirt to act as a dress. It fell easily past my knees but didn't drag on the floor. One of the guys tied a sash around it, making a bow.
"I heard you were pretty smart, Rahzellia-chan," Shanks told me when I was was brought to what looked like the galley. "I'm not going to sugar coat anything. Your mother is dead." I nodded. I already knew this. Very few people on my island could walk through fire. Mother was not one of them. "She asked me to take you to your father if anything ever happened to her. I'm your godfather. That's what we do." Again I nodded. I knew the concept of a godfather. They took in a child when their parents died or could not take care of them. They were like extended family.
"The journey to your father's island will take a couple of months so make yourself at home. We're pirates so things may be a bit dangerous sometimes, but the crew will protect you."
...
My time with the Red Haired Pirates was eventful. I learned various things. The crew was easy going and didn't mind explaining what they were doing. Navigation on the Grand Line fascinated me. I thought that being able to detect storms just by feeling the air was amazing. I did not have the talent for it though. The kitchen was also a fun place to be. The cook liked making something besides meat and would teach me how to make various sweets which were then used as rewards. Shanks tried to teach me about different kinds of sake, bit besides the shape of the bottles and labels, I had no interest in it. Benn and Yassop taught me about guns. They wouldn't let me shoot one, but they taught me how they were made and how they worked.
...
"You sure this is the right island Captain?" Lucky Roo asked. It was one of the few islands the crew let me on, and supposedly the island my father lived on.
The island was scary. There was no sunlight. It was foggy and dark. There were no towns or people. How could someone live here? Why did someone want to live here? It was like a backdrop from a horror story.
"Yeah, look, he's right up there!" Shanks waved. "Oi! Mihawk!" I looked at a figure turn around. He was tall and wore a big fancy hat. He also had something on his back.
"Come for another duel?" the man asked when we approached.
"No. Not today. We have something important to discuss," Shanks wasn't smiling. I knew well enough now that if he wasn't smiling, he was being serious. He could be really scary when he was serious.
The man said nothing but started to lead us to a huge house. I wondered if all of the people in the island lived there. I thought again when the sounds of our foot steps echoed throughout the cold building. We settled in a large room with a few chairs and tables. The man poured Shanks a glass of red liquid. Benn and Lucky Roo tried to distract me with a game while the two men talked in the corner.
"She can't be!"
"Ruby is dead. She asked me to bring Rahzellia to you."
"This place is not equipped for a child!" the man protested.
"This place or you?" Shanks shot back. "She is your daughter."
"She looks exactly like Ruby." his voice was softer now.
"She's pretty smart too. She doesn't talk though."
"What am I going to do with a girl?" the man demanded.
"Raise her, teach her." Shanks drained the glass of red liquid. "My job is done now. Thanks for the drink. I have business around here so I'll visit Rahzellia in a few months. Try not to let her die before then," Shanks laughed.
"Rahzellia?"
"Yeah, who knew what was going through Ruby's head." Shanks stood. "Rahzellia-chan, this guy is your father." Shanks motioned to the man.
"Dracule Mihawk," he said simply.
"You know what happens now right?" The crew would leave and I would stay. I nodded. "Smart girl. We'll visit in a few months."
"We'll bring you back something cool, kid," Benn promised. Lucky Roo rubbed my head. I didn't watch them leave.
Mihawk, father, and I stared at each other for a few minutes.
"You will need to follow a few rules while staying here," he finally began. "You are not to wander outside without my permission. You are not to touch any of my weapons. You will not play with the fires or the stoves in the kitchen. Most importantly, you will not wake me from a nap unless you are in immediate life threatening danger. Do you understand?"
I nodded. It was all I could do. How could Shanks leave me with him? This cold hearted man?
"Good. Follow me." He began to leave the room. I stood from where I was sitting and hurried to follow him. He showed me around his home. It was huge, several times bigger than the house I stayed in with mother. "Did you bring anything with you?" he asked when he showed me my room. I shook my head. "I'll have a seamstress come to measure for clothes then," he said absentmindedly.
My room was large, but it held little. There was a bed with night stands on either side, a door leading to a walk in closet, a fire place,and a large window with a seat under it built into the wall. I wondered why anyone would want to look out into the creepy forrest. The floor was wooden and the walls were stone.
It did not matter what the room looked like. I would not be spending much time there anyway. There was a library. If I could find it again, I would spend my time there, reading. It was not like he would play with me. He didn't give off the easy going sprit the crew did. He was a lot more menacing.
...
Flashback 2
The island was weird. Really weird. I guess I wasn't really used to snow though, not this much at least. The snow towered above me. There was some kind of contest where the residents created pictures in their yard using some kind of eatable coloring. There was another contest to see who could eat the picture the fastest.
There were other contests even more insane than those, but I was focused on the obstacle course. The winner would receive five million belli, money I really needed. The small ship I put together was gone. I barely had money for food and a place to stay. Now I needed money to catch a ride on a boat going to another island. I wanted to find a nice place with flowers. I did not want to stay on a dreary island like my father's or one covered in snow like this one.
"Don't call me a brat! I'm just as strong as anyone else that signed up!" I watched as a boy argued with the man handling registration for the course.
"Come back when you're older. This isn't for kids," the man waved the boy away. The boy huffed and left. I don't know why but I stopped him.
"Wait here a sec," I told him. I walked up to the table.
"May I borrow a pen? Mine froze on me," I smiled at him. He handed me one and I looked for something embarrassing as our hands touched. "You have a very lovely wife," I smiled. He grinned, proud of his partner. I signed my name on the registration sheet.
"Hey, you can't-"
"It would be a shame if she suddenly found out about your time with the barmaid at the pub," I sighed. He turned red. "So would you reconsider the boy you just turned down? It would be weird if I was the only one my age competing." He glared at me but called the boy back over. I gave him the pen.
"You didn't have to do that," the boy frowned as we walked away. "I don't need help from a kid."
"It was on a whim, and I'm not a little kid."
"What do you need the money so bad for anyway? You run away or something?"
"Why do you need it? You get kicked out or something?" I shot back. The wind picked up and blew my hat off. The boy caught it and put it back on my head. "Thanks."
"Let's go inside somewhere. I'll treat you to a hot chocolate." He started to walk, a destination already in mind.
"You don't owe me anything," I told him. "I really just did that on a whim."
"I just don't want you crying about it when I beat you," he grinned. I stuck my tongue out at him. He led me to an inn that wasn't far away. We hung our winter gear by the fire and sat a table against the wall where we could see the whole room. I finally got a good look at him with out the hat and scarf covering his face.
He was about my age, his face still boyish. His hair was white and spiky and his eyes looked like the same shade of blue as mine. He was taller than me by several inches, but I understood that I was short for my age.
"I'm Elliott," he introduced.
"Rahzellia," he gave me a weird look. "You can shorten it if you want," I offered. I never had a nickname before. Father and Shanks always called my full name.
"What about Rahzel?" he asked. I smiled and nodded. I liked it.
We spoke of non-important things, the snow and the cold, who had the best hot chocolate in town, (the inn we were in), shortcuts in the town we found, how long we had been in town. We avoided serious subjects. When we finished our hot chocolate, we went back outside. Elliott knew a patch of untouched snow we could play in. We spent the afternoon making an army of snowmen. We gave them names and personalities, then we destroyed them in a snowball fight.
"Why did your parents kick you out?" Our snowball fight was over. We were laying in a spot of grass we cleared when we were making the snowmen.
"My dad said he taught me everything. I guess he felt he raised me to the best of his ability and there was no reason for me to stay." I shrugged. "Why did you run away?"
"I didn't want to stay there. If I did, they would have made me follow my dad's foot steps. He works for the government and has to follow rules."
"You're not a rule follower," I grinned.
"Neither are you," he grinned back.
"So what are you gonna do?"
"I don't know. I just know I don't want to go back. I'll travel for now, I guess."
"I want to find the perfect island and stay there," I told him. "One where the sun shines and where I can plant flowers."
"That's a girly dream," he laughed.
"At least I know what I want!" Elliott scowled at me. "I don't know where an island like that is though. The Grand Line changes so often," I frowned.
"You'll find one. I heard the South Blue has sunny islands."
"I'm going to have to win a lot of contests to get to the South Blue."
"You won't win this one!"
"Yes, I will,"
"No, you won't." We continued the argument for a few minutes. The sun was setting. It was time to go back to the inn.
...
The course ran around the whole island. A normal child wouldn't have that kind of stamina. There were also several mean looking pirates participating. I got a few weird looks when I put on my number tag, but no one bothered to harass me. They figured I wasn't worth it, that the course would take me out. They were wrong.
"Rahzel!" Elliott called me. I found him in the crowd. We talked a bit about the course. First we were running along the beach on the sand, then we were going to climb a series of ladders on a cliff, then across a rope bridge over a river that was iced over. After that there were cave tunnels with clues about which way to go, then it was a run through a field of snow. Other traps and trials were scattered along the course as well. I gathered information on past races to see if I could find any patterns, but there were none. The course surprises were kept completely secret. It didn't matter though. What ever they threw at me, I would over come it.
When the race started I stayed in the middle of the group. Elliott had the same idea. There were pitfalls on the beach. It only took two to fall in before I saw that the holes were marked with shells. The ladders on the cliff were trapped as well. Some of them were quick release when a certain amount of weight was put on them. I could not spot the small mechanisms, but after watching a man fall from a ladder I had just climbed on, I figured that I was too light to trigger them.
The rope bridge was a bit more tricky. A pirate decided to run a knife over the rope after he was safely across. Three men fell with the bridge, cracking open the ice on the river. I didn't want to climb down and try my luck on the ice with such a huge hole in it. Elliott looked puzzled as well. I saw that one of the pirates had a sword. He looked peeved his friend left him.
"May I borrow your sword?" I asked him.
"I'm not giving a little girl a sword!" he snarled. I shrugged.
"Will a dagger work?" Elliott asked. I nodded. He followed me to one of the trees on the edge of the cliff.
"It will take forever to cut one of those down!" the pirate with the sword called. I took Elliott's dagger. It was well made and heavy in my hand. I focused my haki into the weapon and swung it in to the tree. It made a loud cracking sound and fell over the valley. I swung again, cutting the branches off of it to make a path. I handed Elliott back his dagger.
"Cool!" he grinned and followed me across the new bridge. We ran faster to catch up with the group in front of us.
The cave was really tricky. At each tunnel there was a riddle or a pun you had to figure out. If you got it wrong, you not only got lost, but you triggered a trap as well. Elliott and I formed a temporary alliance. Our shared knowledge put us in the lead, Elliott performing all the physical tasks the signs demanded, and I solving riddles or answering questions.
"Cool!" I exclaimed after watching Elliott balance and twist on ropes to grab a vase without touching the floor. "Can you teach me how to do that?" I asked when the task was over. It was our last one in the cave. I could see the end of the tunnel now.
"If you teach me how you cut down the tree."
"Deal."
The run through the snow was as much of a mental challenge as a physical one. All we could see was white. We wouldn't see the goal for a while. We didn't even know if we were going the right way.
"I think its time to end the alliance," Elliott said as the goal came into view.
"Good luck," I offered as I increased my speed. I didn't focus on Elliott as I ran. I breathed in and out as I made myself move faster and faster.
"We have a tie ladies and gentlemen!" A tie? "Numbers twenty-six and twenty-seven have tied for first place!" I looked at Elliott who was breathing heavily next to me.
"Split the money," we both blurted at the same time. We stared at each other for a moment then burst out laughing. We split the money for first and second place.
"What are you going to do now?" he asked on our way to the inn for hot chocolate.
"Find a ship and go to another island I guess."
"That's it?" he asked. He stared at me. "You have potential, Rahzel. You're like me, you have more power that the people your age. Isn't there something you want to do with it?"
I fidgeted. "I am a bit young to just settle down on an island," I admitted.
"You have something you want," he pressed.
"I want to know more about the world," I admitted. "I've heard stories about it. I want to know if it is really so corrupt and some places so beautiful. I want to know everything about the world."
"Unlock the mysteries of the Grand Line?" Elliott grinned.
"And the New World!" I was excited.
"Let's do it then!" A light was lit in his eyes. "If we go every where, and you learn everything, we are bound to find your island, and my dream!"
"Un," I agreed. Elliott held his hand out.
"Partners." I took his hand.
"Friends." We shook on it
...
Is everyone shocked, or did you see it coming?
Ferro Island belongs to Greengirl011. We shall finally arrive in the next chapter. Flashbacks with Kai will be included.
Thank you so much for reading and following and favoriting and reviewing!