Hey, all you Voice readers!

We got a lot of reviews answering the riddle in the last chapter!

Luffy: Did they get it right?

Koe: Luffy, why don't you tell them your guess? You did figure it out... after a few days.

Luffy: (grins) A cold! It's a cold!

FM13: So, to all those who reviewed with the answer, You were right!

Koe: (glares) This doesn't happen to be foreshadowing of some kind, does it?

FM13: Just say the disclaimer.

Koe: (groans and rolls her eyes) Frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters. Only her OCs.

Chapter 36

"Now." Crocus said, handing Nami an odd looking bracelet. It had an interesting wood-like finish, and a glass dome with the N for North, S for South, E for East, W for west, and a needle clicking from side to side.

"This is a log pose." he said. "You're going to need this if you're navigating the Grand Line. Normal compasses don't work here."

I raised my eyebrows. "They don't?" I said, "Then how does a log pose work?"

I must have sounded rather skeptical, because Crocus laughed. "They lock onto an island's magnetic signature. Unlike other seas, islands in the Grand Line have their own magnetic signature. Because they're so odd, log poses take time to reset. That's the hard part. No run-of-the-mill navigator can use a log pose."

I smiled. "Well then." I said. "Nami's the right navigator for the job. She's the best navigator around!"

Nami blushed. Then, she grinned. "Of course, she's right!"

I turned to Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday. "So where exactly are you two from, anyway?"

Miss Wednesday looked at me fearfully - I guess my little outburst spooked her a bit - and said, "We're from Whiskey Peak."

I nodded. "Alright then." I said. "I guess our course has been set."

Nami grinned. "Shall we go-aaahhh!"

Laboon let out a bellow so loud it knocked me to the ground.

"What's going on?!" I shouted, although it was drowned in the noise.

Crocus patted Laboon's side. "Come now, Laboon!" he called. "It's alright! You don't have to cry!"

"Crocus!" Usopp shouted. "What's going on?!"

Then, Luffy acted. In -of course- a way no one would have expected. He jumped up so high, he was level with Laboon's eye. Then, he pulled his fist back, and slammed it into his eye!

"LUFFY!" We snapped.

Laboon reared back his head, and rammed it at Luffy. He hit the red line with the force of a hundred cannonballs.

I winced. Where was Luffy? Go figure. Up in the air. "Gum-Gum... Gattling!" he shouted. He smacked Laboon repeatedly.

"Damn it, Luffy!" I shouted. "Knock it off!" Then, I stopped. I stared at Laboon's enormous eye. It was shining.

Nami stepped forward. "Luffy! Sto-" I put my hand on Nami's shoulder.

"Give him a break, Nami." I said. "Look at Laboon."

Luffy hit the rocks with a thud. He smiled. "So that's it." he said. "Your pirate friends used to fight with you. You really miss that." He flashed Laboon a huge grin. "I'll tell you what." he said. "When I become king of the pirates, I'll come back and fight you. We'll have a great time!"

Laboon's eye -the one I could see, anyway- filled with tears. He opened his mouth and let out a bellow of happiness.

Smiling, I walked up to Luffy and put my hand on his shoulder. "How is it that you can make anyone feel better in the weirdest ways?"

Luffy grinned. "Shishishi! I don't know!"

Laboon bellowed again.

I gently pushed Luffy aside. "Hey, Laboon!" I called. I had noticed something on Laboon's back. Something I wanted to get rid of for him. I called on the water. It rose, but not as quickly as normal. I frowned. I insisted, and the water rose above Laboon's head. I made a slashing motion with my arm. The water cascaded down Laboon's back, snapping off five or six very large barnacles. I couldn't exactly tell what size the barnacles were, because of how fast they were moving. Unfortunately, I had miscalculated as to where they would land. One of them hit Usopp in the back, knocking him into the water.

"Oops." I said. I willed the sea to spit him up. For an alarming moment, it didn't do anything. Then, with a faint squirt, Usopp popped out of the water and landed on his back on the dock.

"Oops." I said again.

Usopp jumped up, fire in his eyes. "Damn it!" he shouted. "I'll get you for this, Koe!"

Nami, Zoro, and Sanji, who were standing behind Usopp, started chuckling. After a few seconds, they started guffawing.

Usopp whipped around to face them. "WHAT THE HELL'S SO FUNNY!" he shouted.

Of course, at that point, I had a good view of what the hell was so funny. One of the huge barnacles, which I now realised was as big around as a basketball, had gotten a foothold on his back.

I stifled a laugh. Okay, that was pretty funny. "Here," I said. "Turn around and I'll find a way to get it off." I latched my fingers around the part of the barnacle that was too wide to latch onto him, and pulled. But barnacles, like limpets and other things, once they get a foothold, they'll keep a death grip on their host. My tugging the barnacle did absolutely nothing.

After a couple of minutes, Luffy joined in. Then Nami. Zoro and Sanji didn't do anything. They just stood there, laughing. Asses. At least the rest of us had the decency to try to get it off.

Finally, with a squelching sound, the barnacle came off. All three of us fell backwards on top of Crocus.

"Sorry, Crocus-ossan." I said.

"No problem." he grunted, pushing us off.

Usopp, on the other hand, had hurtled towards Zoro and Sanji, who made no attempt to catch him. He slipped on the wet rock, and fell into the water again.

With gales of new laughter, Sanji walked over to the side, and stuck his hand in the water and fished Usopp out. Usopp looked absolutely livid.

9 and Wednesday were laughing almost as hard as Zoro and Sanji. I got up and I smacked both of them. "I really wish the Merry had a prison cell." I growled. "Then we could toss you two in there when you annoy us." That earned me a very dirty look from both of them.

Laboon let out a kind of happy whimper. Then, he turned to me, and I was assaulted by a wet pink thing. Of course, I was lifted off the ground. Laboon was huge. It would be like me trying to lick a baby ant. With a great Slurping sound, I was launched into the air.

I risked a look down. I nearly fainted from fear. I was two hundred feet above the ground!

I let out a little yelp, then plummeted. Wind whistled in my ears and cold bit at my skin. That wasn't too much of a problem for me, though. It was the fact that I was so high up that was scaring me. I screwed my eyes shut and waited for the horrible splat that would end my life.

Of course, Luffy caught me. He jumped up, caught me, and landed on his feet.

"Wow!" he said. "That must have been quite a ride!"

Laboon stared at me, concerned.

I stayed in Luffy's grip, shivering from cold and fright. I was covered in whale drool. I couldn't speak for a few seconds. Finally, I nodded to show Luffy I could stand again. "Thanks, Laboon." I said shakily. "T-that was sweet."

Laboon gave another Buaaaa-

I smiled, then, I sneezed loudly.

By the time we got everything packed up on the Merry, Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday were under strict supervision, and the log pose checked out, the sun was dipping to the horizon line.

"Well," Nami said, sliding the log pose onto her wrist. "I guess we'd better go."

Laboon let out a mournful bellow.

"Oh, don't be sad, Laboon!" I called. "We'll be back! For sure!"

Luffy jumped off Merry's deck. "Hey!" he said, grinning. "I've got an idea!"

"Uh, Luffy..." I said. "The thought is sweet... But the art is..." Abysmal. That was the word.

Luffy had taken paint from Merry's storage, and painted our jolly roger on his snout. It, as well as Luffy's other drawings and paintings, looked like the work of a two-year-old.

Laboon, however, seemed to like it. He let out a bellow of delight.

I grinned.

"Well, we really should get going now." Nami said. "C'mon Luffy."

We climbed on board, and we started to sail away.

"Thanks for everything Crocus!" Nami called.

"Take care of yourselves!" Usopp called.

I looked at Laboon. "Take care, Laboon!" I called.

We all waved as Twin Cape disappeared from sight. I could still hear Laboon's cry of farewell.

"Now, what way to Whiskey Peak?" Nami asked.

Wednesday frowned. "West." she said.

Nami nodded. "Okay! Set course! Three o'clock!"

I stood up. "Okay!" I said. "I'll man the rudder." I took a step forward, and a wave of dizziness hit me. I swayed, and nearly collapsed.

Sanji caught me before I could hit the deck. "Koe-chan," he said. "Are you alright?!" He sounded a little worried. "What's wrong?"

I blinked hard. Blue and Yellow spots were dancing in front of my eyes. "I'm fine." I said. "Just a dizzy spell."

Zoro, who was standing watch over 9 and Wednesday, looked at me and raised an eyebrow. "Who do you think you're fooling?" he said sternly. "You've looked pale ever since we scaled reverse mountain. I'm not surprised you're sick."

"I'm not sick!" I protested. "I feel fine!"

Nami stepped up, and placed the back of her hand on my forehead. "You're a little warm." she said. "You've got a bit of a fever."

"Like I said," I growled. "I'm fine!"

Sanji shook his head. "You're not putting up a very convincing defense." he said. "You should get some rest."

I rolled my eyes. "But I'm not sick." I said. "I've never been sick a day in my life!"

Usopp shrugged. "There's a first time for everything, isn't there?"

These people weren't making it easy for me to get to the rudder!

I jerked from Sanji's grasp, and said, "Now, if it pleases your majesties, I'm going to man the rudder." I was going to walk away, when Luffy slam-tackled me in a kind of headlock.

"C'mon!" he said, that laughing tone still in his voice. "Let's get you to your room. You're probably cancerous! Shishishi!"

"You mean 'contagious.'" I deadpanned. "And I'm not sick!" But there was nothing I could do. Luffy pushed me inside, and then shoved me into my room.

"Stay put!" he said. "Get some rest! That's an order!" With that, he turned and left.

I turned and faced my hammock. My desk was near it, and my book was opened to a fresh page. I sighed, and felt my forehead. It was really warm. I walked over and shut the book. "Sorry, Shanks." I said. "I'm not going to be writing anything tonight."

I flopped down on my hammock. I groaned. Now that I was alone in the girl's room, and all the events of the day were over, I felt weak, and very, very feverish. Whaddaya know... Nami was right. I was really sick.

Suddenly, Merry started rocking under my feet. I tried to keep myself from being sick from the nauseating rolling. Just our luck to have hit a storm. I pulled my bandana off and wetted it. I placed it on my forehead, and closed my eyes.

I knew I must have had a fever judging by the dreams I had. They were really strange. I saw memories I hadn't thought of for a while.

First off, I was three years old, holding onto Keith's hand. "Where are we going?" I asked. "Is Mommy following us?"

Keith didn't answer for a moment. Then, he said, "Mom doesn't know where we are. Give me a second. I need to remember the way."

I looked around. I didn't recognise the alleyway we were going through. All I knew was, I was scared. If we got caught... I didn't want to think about it.

We rounded a corner, and Keith gasped. He had caught his foot on a space between two cobblestones. We both fell with a crash.

That was when I noticed flashing lights and police sirens coming our way.

Almost as fast as the scene appeared, it was gone. Faded to give way to a new scene.

I was five years old, sitting on the dock at Windmill Village. Beside me, Luffy was pulling at his rubbery fingers, and swinging his legs over the side of the dock. On my other side, Shanks was leaning back, staring at the sky, his feet in the water.

We were just sitting in silence. I didn't mind so much, because I couldn't understand them and they couldn't understand me.

I stared out at the calm surface of the water. I gasped. "Oh! Shanks! Luffy!"

A fish that must have been as big as Shanks had broken the surface of the water, launching itself high in the air, spraying us with a fine, refreshing mist.

Luffy leaned forward, grinning. "Sugoi!" he shouted.

Unfortunately, I didn't notice until it was too late. "Luffy!" I warned. Of course it didn't work.

Luffy leaned over too far, lost his balance, and fell in.

Shanks laughed, then dove in after him.

Then, this scene faded too, and a new scene took it's place.

I was with Luffy, Ace, and Sabo. We had been racing through the forest, when we had to cross a suspension bridge.

Luffy had fallen through a rotting board.

Ace had jumped off and grabbed him, while Sabo had grabbed Ace's ankles, trying to keep him from falling further. As for me, I couldn't do much, so I grabbed onto Sabo's waist, trying to support the weight of three other people, or so I thought at the time.

It took a long time, but Luffy managed to climb over Ace and Sabo to the bridge.

I reached out, and Luffy grabbed my hand.

I was eleven years old, sitting against a tree, holding my shin. I had gotten into a scuffle with a mother bear when I was trying to catch up to Luffy and Ace. I had just barely managed to escape with the help of my devil fruit power, but not before she had slashed me across the shin.

Now, I was lost, terrified, bleeding like crazy, and completely alone.

I shut my eyes and rested the back of my head against the trunk. I had to stay calm. Freaking out wasn't going to do anything.

Step one: don't panic.

Step two: consider your options. Call for help? No. That wouldn't do any good. If anything, I would draw unwanted attention to myself. Walk fifteen kilometers to Dadan's hut? Hell no. I could barely get past the bear and get less than a kilometer away. Walking all the way to Dadan's hut wasn't an option. Hop on one foot? Not a hope. Stay where I was? Only option at the moment.

I pulled off my bandana, which I kept around my neck at that point, and wrapped it around my shin, applying pressure to stop the bleeding. The only thing I could do after that was wait.

I waited for a long time. Finally, I heard someone call my name. I knew that voice. "Ace!" I called. "Over here!"

Ace stumbled through the brush, a look of concern on his face. He turned pale when he saw my leg. He dashed over. "Oh my god..." he breathed. "Here." He picked me up. "Let's go back. Luffy's waiting."

The scene spun, cries met my ears, I groaned, then my eyes snapped open.

I rolled over and looked at the clock on the wall.

11:00

I groaned and buried my head further into my pillow. I tried to go back to sleep, but apparently I had already gotten my visit from mr. Sandman. I suddenly wished I had Zoro's ability to fall asleep at the drop of a hat.

I sighed. Then, I realised that Merry wasn't moving. At first, I thought it was because the storm had subsided, but now I realised that Merry wasn't moving at all. "Must have reached Whiskey Peak." I muttered. Groaning, I hauled myself off my hammock, and jumped down. I hit the floor with a thud.

I rubbed my forehead. My fever had gone down quite a bit. A bit of rest was just what the non-existent doctor had ordered. I found that rather ironic, since I was the impromptu doctor of the ship.

I climbed up on deck and squinted at the village of Whiskey Peak. There were very few lights on, so I might not have been able to see much if it hadn't been for the full moon.

The houses were built to resemble two story desert houses, made of mud, with no glass in the windows. The roads weren't paved, but then again, that wasn't so abnormal. The place smelled vaguely of wine, and something else. Blood. Smoke. A battle had happened not too long ago.

I caught my breath when I saw the rocks behind the village. They looked a bit like cacti, but they weren't cacti. They were very large spherical boulders. The things that looked like needles from this distance were actually... I swallowed the lump in my throat... graves.

Suddenly, battle cries and screams echoed from the centre of town. A large dust cloud kicked up. It looked oddly like a sword slash.

I sighed, and rubbed my temples. "Moss-ball's causing trouble..." I groaned. I stepped over the rail, and climbed down the rope ladder. "I'd better go. Zoro probably needs my help. Better go see what he's broken this time."

Koe: (glares) I knew it. It was foreshadowing.

FM13: Heh heh...

Luffy: Well, this is probably going to get ugly, so I'll say it now! Please review! XD