Amie: You're updating? So soon?
Geez, you make it sound like a bad thing!
Amie: It's not! It's just kind of surprising!
Yeah, well, I had it done, and I didn't feel like letting it sit... and I was too lazy to mess with it anymore...
Amie: Oy...
Zoro: She just feels guilty for slacking and watching Youtube videos...
NO I WAS NOT WATCHING LUCKY STAR!! -Looks back and forth warily.- Er... anyway! Poll update! Well, Ace is in first place, followed by Zoro/Sanji, then Luffy, and Frank and Usopp.
Nami: Wha...? They didn't change!
Oh, they did! It's just that more people voted!
Oh! I'm also posting another chapter in The One Piece Attempt: Drabble Series. It's gonna be called "Costumes". Why am I bringing this up? You'll see...
So, folks! Read on!
"You know..." Zoro said, turning to face me. "When I said that you were going to get yourself killed, I didn't think it would be so soon!"
"What are you talking about?" I said, my hammer reverting to its pendant form. "I was in perfect control of the situation!"
"Just standing there and waiting for a booger to explode as it hit you is perfect control!?" Zoro shouted.
I couldn't help but blink as I rethought my plan of action. In the end, I pouted. "When you put it that way..."
"I HAD TO CUT A BOOGER BECAUSE OF YOU!!" Zoro shouted.
I felt my brow twitch. "WELL YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO DO THAT!! YOU COULD'VE JUST WAITED FOR IT TO HAVE HIT ME AND THEN STEP IN!!"
"I COULDN'T JUST DO THAT!!"
"AND WHY NOT!?"
Zoro seemed to freeze up on that, and before he could respond, there was some laughter. We turned to see Mr. 5 and Miss Valentine there, the laughter coming from Miss Valentine.
"So, these are the two that destroyed this town..." Mr. 5 said. "Why are you protecting the Princess of Alabasta?"
"I have my reasons..." Zoro said.
"The cute buzzard." I stated simply.
"Will you cut the buzzard crap!?" Zoro snapped at me.
I stuck my tongue out at him.
"It doesn't matter." We turned to Mr. 5 and Miss Valentine again. "You still don't compare to us. You're just another worthless obstacle..."
"That's right..." Miss Valentine said, removing her hat. "So this obstacle will be crushed to the ground by my power?"
"What's that, I wonder?" I mumbled. "Lobbing lemons at our head?"
"I highly doubt that..." Zoro muttered back.
"ZORO!! AMIE-CHAN!!" Eh? Was that Luffy?
"Luffy?" Zoro said.
"Well, looks like he's finally awake..." But I couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy...
"If you've come to help, that's not necessary..." Zoro said, smirking. "Or did you owe Nami too?"
"I WILL NOT FORGIVE EITHER OF YOU!!" EH!? "I'M GONNA KICK YOUR ASSES!!"
"WHAT!?" I sighed as Zoro shouted.
"Greeeeaaaat..." Leave it to Luffy to get the wrong idea at the worst possible time...
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!?" Zoro shouted again.
"SHUT UP!!" Luffy shouted back. "I'LL CRUSH YOU, YOU UNGRATEFUL BASTARDS!!"
"Technically, wouldn't I be a bitch?" I asked, raising my hand slightly.
"DON'T ENCOURAGE THIS NONSENSE!!" Zoro snapped at me.
"I'M NOT!!" I was just stated facts here! AND I WASN'T A PRIESTESS!!
"I WON'T FORGIVE YOU!!" Luffy shouted. "THEY GAVE US A WARM WELCOME, AND THEN YOU JUST HAD TO HARM ALL THOSE PEOPLE!!"
"That's kinda true..." I muttered.
"What a moron..." I heard Vivi mumble.
And I couldn't help but agree...
"Luffy!" I looked at Zoro. "Listen to me! These people are actually..."
"DON'T MAKE EXCUSES!!" I squeaked as Luffy shouted this as he lunged at us, and I leapt out of the way when he tried to punch me.
"ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL US!?" Zoro snapped, looking back at the damaged building behind him.
"Yes..." Luffy said darkly, kicking at him. "Just go to hell!"
He then aimed a kick at me. "Both of you!"
I jumped out of the way again, glancing back at Vivi and Carue. In order to keep Luffy from accidentally hitting them, I'll have to keep away from them. Luffy's strong...
... And I reconfirmed that when I was snapped out of my thoughts and was punched in the gut by Luffy himself. I crashed into a building wall, leaving an indent, and I fell to the ground, clutching my gut.
"Madame Priestess!" Grr... Why won't Vivi stop calling me that!?
I stood and I flinched, pain stinging at my gut. Damn... Luffy really is serious...
I glanced back at Luffy and Zoro, seeing Zoro dodge Luffy's hits. If Zoro were to keep Luffy distracted... I could-!
"WOULD YOU STOP BEING AN IDIOT!?" I felt my eyes widen slightly as Zoro kicked Luffy away, sending him careening into a building and taking Miss Valentine and Mr. 5 with him. "Moron..."
I sighed through my nose, letting go of my waist and walking back over to Vivi and Carue.
"Amie-sama, are you alright?" I groaned, looking at Vivi.
"For the last time, it's Amie-chan. If anything, call me Amie-san! Geez..." I said. "Oh, and it stings a little, but I'll be fine..."
"Amie-chan..." I blinked, looking at Zoro, seeing his back to me.
"This is a fight between Luffy and me." He stated. "Protect the princess, and if you think anyone else will get involved with this fight, then take care of them..."
"So, it's two to tango, three's a crowd..." I said. "But keep the audience under control... yeah, I think I can do that..."
"Good..." And as Zoro stated that, there was a crash and something flew up from the rubble.
I looked up and sighed. It was the lemon lady. Whoopie...
"I'M REALLY ANGRY NOW!!" Riiiight... "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU ALL WITH MY KILO KILO FRUIT POWERS!!"
"Mr. Bushido! Get out of here!" I looked at Vivi. "That woman will..."
"Vivi..." She looked at me. "I highly doubt he cares about a flying woman right now..."
"But... but he..." Vivi started, but was cut off when there was another crash and some more dust billowing up into the sky, and we looked out.
There was Luffy, back to his normal size, dragging an unconscious Mr. 5 out of the rubble.
"You've got to be kidding me!" Vivi shouted. "He took out Mr. 5!?"
"Men like Mr. 5 are easy to defeat, Vivi..." I said, causing her to look at me. "Trust me. We're... a different kind of pirate crew..."
"Luffy, listen to me!" Zoro shouted, trying one more time to talk some sense into Luffy. "Everyone in this town is a pirate hunter! They were our enemies!"
"LIES!!" Luffy shouted. "WHAT KIND OF ENEMY WOULD BRING US FOOD!?"
I sighed through my nose again. Leave it to Luffy to trust anyone who gives him food...
Not too long after he said that, I heard some shouting get closer. I blinked, then yelped, jumping five feet in the air as Miss Valentine crashed to the ground, barely missing Zoro as he untied his bandana from his arm and tied it to his head.
"YOU IDIOT, I HAVE TO BE SERIOUS!!" Zoro shouted. "IF YOU DIE, DON'T BE SORRY!!"
"NO WAY!!"
"W-wait a minute!" I looked at Vivi. "Aren't they friends!?"
"We all are..." I said. "It's just that... well..."
I sighed, trying to think of a good way of stating it. "We're... just... different..." I said slowly. "Our captain, well..."
I flinched as they started fighting. "Ah... you know what? I'll just say different and stick to it. Is that okay?"
"Uh... I... guess so...?" Vivi said, almost unsure.
I beamed at her. "Great!" I said. My smile wavered as they kept fighting, a building nearby collapsing, causing Carue to freak out a bit.
"That's right, Mr. 5!" Eh? "We have to show them our real power!"
Oh dear... "Excuse me for a sec, 'kay?"
Without her response, I dashed off, dodging a few bursts of rubble here and there, my hammer pressing into my hand.
"LET'S GO, MISS VALENTINE!!"
"OKAY, MR. 5!!"
I stopped in front of them. "I don't think so, folks!" I said, tapping my hammer on the ground, causing the head to expand. They halted, gawking at it.
I smiled darkly. "Remember when I said that you should've said your prayers?"
I heard Miss Valentine sob.
I rose my hammer up to strike down. "You have one second left!" And with that, I hammered down, hitting them both. Hard.
I flinched barely, feeling my stomach throb slightly in pain. Hoisting that hammer up affected it more than I thought...
My hammer retracted, and I smirked, seeing them both unconscious on the ground.
"That takes care of tha-!" I choked as I felt something grab the back of my shirt and pull me over.
"YOU'RE IN THIS FIGHT TOO!!" Shit! It's Luffy!
I couldn't help but close my eyes as I saw myself being pulled closer and closer to Luffy's fist, Zoro getting ready to strike at him with his swords.
Great... I'm screwed now...
"WILL YOU STOP BEING STUPID!?" I yelped as Nami punched both Luffy and Zoro in the face, causing Luffy's grip to slacken and me to fall to my side on the ground.
"What are you two doing!? And why did you drag Amie-chan into it!?" Nami then grabbed Zoro and Luffy by the collars of their shirts. "I WAS CLOSE TO LOSING ONE BILLION BELLI!! DIDN'T YOU REALIZE THAT!?"
"What are you talking about?" I glanced up at Vivi. "And why are you helping me?"
"That's right. We have to talk." I sat up and sighed as Luffy and Zoro were still fighting. "How about some... ugh..."
And with that, Nami punched them in the heads again. "STOP FIGHTING!!"
"Nami... Zoro and Amie-chan hurt all these innocent people!" Luffy muttered, getting back up.
"Innocent people?" Nami said as I helped Zoro sit up against a crate. "Luffy, they were pirate hunters, and they were trying to kill us!"
"Yeah." I said, sitting on the crate Zoro was sitting up against, legs crossed Indian-style. "They hit us, and we hit back. It was only in self defense."
"Really?" Luffy said, sitting on a barrel.
"Yes, Luffy..." I said. "Really..."
"Oh..." I felt my ear twitch as I heard Nami and Vivi talking, apparently negotiating the price.
There was a long pause.
Then, Luffy started laughing.
"Why didn't you say so in the first place!?" He said, still laughing. "I thought you hurt them because they didn't have your favorite food!"
"NOT EVERYONE'S LIKE YOU, YA KNOW!!" Zoro snapped, but Luffy kept on laughing.
I couldn't help but giggle, ruffling Zoro's hair. "There there, Zoro-kun!"
Zoro batted my hand away. "If you're gonna do that, I'm gonna kick you off that crate!"
"Okay, okay..." I said, ceasing with my hair-ruffling. "Your hair's super rufflable, though..."
Zoro looked at me, an eyebrow raised. "Ruffa-wha...?"
I only snickered. "Never mind..."
"Thank you for saving my life..." We stopped our conversation and tuned in to Vivi's and Nami's. "As for your reward, I'm afraid it's impossible..."
"Why? Aren't you a princess?" Nami said. "It's just one billion belli..."
"Do you know of Alabasta?" Vivi asked.
"Never heard of it..." Nami said.
"It used to be the most peaceful and most civilized nation in the Grand Line..." Vivi explained.
"Used to?" Zoro asked.
"During the past few years, there has been a civil war..." Vivi continued. "The citizens began to create turmoil in the nation until one day, I heard about an organization called Baroque Works. Apparently, the citizens were being persuaded by them, but this was just a rumor, so we couldn't do anything about it. So, I asked Igaram to help me."
"Ah, the guy with the curly hair, right?" Luffy asked, motioning curls with his hands.
Vivi nodded. "We decided to join it to dig up some secrets..." She said. "So we would know who the real people were who were behind this and their true purpose..."
At this point, I got confused. "Wait... they...?"
It went unnoticed.
"Igaram said that the main purpose is to build a dream country...right?" Nami asked.
"Yes." Vivi said. "The Boss used that term to control everyone, but in truth, he's really trying to conquer Alabasta. That's why I have to hurry and warn everyone. If I can't stop everyone, we all will fall for Baroque Works' plan."
"That's why." Nami said. "A chaotic nation wouldn't have that much money, would they?"
"So, who is The Boss?" Luffy asked, only to find Vivi wave her hands around. "If I were to tell you, it'd cost you your life!"
I raised an eyebrow. I highly doubt that a simple name could lead to a death sentence...
Nami laughed uneasily. "It's good that you're not telling us!" She said. "A person who wants to conquer a nation must be a pretty bad guy!"
"I dunno..." I said, scratching my chin. "Some conquerors could be friendly!"
"Oh no!" Vivi said. "Crocodile is one of the Seven Kings of Pirates, and he is far from friendly!"
A couple of seconds after saying that, I blinked, and Vivi paled, covering her mouth. Nami and Luffy's jaws both dropped.
"You just said his name." Zoro said, an eyebrow of his twitching.
"Yep." I said quickly. "She did."
There was a strange noise and I blinked, looking up and seeing a strangely dressed otter and vulture perched on a building. They stared at us, looked at each other, then flew off, the otter flying on the vulture's back.
Well, now that that's out of the way, maybe Vivi can finally tell me what this whole "Heart Shell" business is all about...
"HEY!!" Eh!? "WHAT'S WITH THE OTTER AND THE VULTURE!? THEY'RE GOING TO TELL YOUR BOSS ABOUT US, AREN'T THEY!?"
"I'M SORRY!! I DIDN'T INTEND ON TELLING YOU!!"
I turned and gaped as Nami shook Vivi back and forth by her jacket.
"Nami! Nami, calm down!" I shouted as Nami kept yelling. I jumped off the crate. "I still have some questions for her!"
"THEN HERE!!" I yelped, stumbling back a bit as Nami threw her at me. She looked rather dizzy, and I sighed as she kept on yelling, propping Vivi up against the wall.
"Oy, Vivi..." I said softly. "Vivi, you still haven't told me how you found out about the Heart Shell..."
"Eh? Heart Shell?" I ignored Zoro as Vivi groaned, shaking her head a bit and looking at me.
"Wha...? Oh... Oh yes..." Vivi sat up a bit and I kneeled in front of her, hands on my knees. "Igaram and I weren't the only spies in Baroque Works. Some of the millions, like the ones you and Mr. Bushido defeated, were members of a pirate crew..."
She stared straight at me. "Their captain was Marikia Calypsus..." She continued. "And I overheard one of their private meetings once..."
I yelped as she grabbed my by my shirt. "Madame Priestess, you must be careful!" What the hell!? "Marikia Calypsus... she sent a portion of her crew into Baroque Works in order to capture and kill you!"
"What!?" Zoro shouted in shock.
"Kill me!?" I shouted. "What the hell did I do to her!?"
"I don't really know, but they kept on going on about an imposter, and how that imposter was once sent far away after Marikia destroyed Calypsia! And then they apparently found out that the imposter was back, and..." Vivi trailed off, then let go of my shirt. "I'm sorry, Amie-sama. It... It's just..."
Vivi looked at me. "I thought that... you must've heard that someone was after you and you were going after them!"
I sighed. "Okay, first off, I'm not a Priestess. Second, I don't know this Marikia Calypsus person. Never met her in my life. All in all, the whole capture-and-kill thing must be some great big misunderstanding... I'm just a simple nineteen-year-old singer for my pirate crew..." I explained as calmly as possible. I let loose at the next part. "AND QUIT CALLING ME MADAME PRIESTESS AND AMIE-SAMA!!"
"Wow! You're good!" Eh?
I turned and gaped. There was the little otter, holding up four sketches, and they were of Nami, Luffy, Zoro, and myself...
... Hey, wait a minute! "I don't look that spacey!"
"THIS MEANS I CAN'T RUN AWAY NOW!!" Nami shouted as the otter dashed off.
"I highly doubt you could've gotten far, Nami..." I said, standing and pulling Vivi up with me.
"Well..." Zoro said, smirking. "It seems that we're on Baroque Works' black list now..."
"And not only that, some crazy pirate wench is trying to kill me, and for what? I have no idea..." I muttered, seeing Nami sulk in a corner. Vivi walked over to her and knelt next to her.
Luffy merely laughed. "This is so exciting!"
I sighed, crossing my arms. "I guess it is..." Though this is still rather confusing...
I mean, I never met this Marikia Calypsus person in my life, and apparently, because of this weird shell around my neck, she's trying to kill me...
... But of course, all that has to be a bunch of nonsense! I've never met her, never put myself into a situation that would make me appear like an imposter, or a Priestess, in any way.
So, all in all, I'm just in one big misunderstood mess, but I can get out of this. Maybe this Marikia lady is actually a rather understanding woman, and once she hears my story, she'll apologize for all the trouble and leave me be...
... Or be stubborn as hell and still try to kill me, which, in that situation, I will have to kick her ass...
I mean, that shouldn't be too hard!
Yeah! I just have to focus on protecting Vivi and beating some sense into Marikia! Yeah!
I will be fine! I will be fine!
"EVERYONE!! PLEASE, DON'T WORRY!!"
We all turned to the source of the voice, and I felt my eye twitch when I finally saw it.
It was Igaram...
Igaram... dressed as Vivi...
So... burning...
Agh... I couldn't take it...!
"Zoro, give me one of your katana..." I said, reaching to one of the three strapped to his waist, but he blocked my hand.
"Why the heck do you want one of my katana?"
"Because I need to gouge my eyes out with something..."
"YOU'RE NOT GOUGING YOUR EYES OUT, AND DEFINITELY NOT WITH ONE OF MY KATANA!!"
"Pleeeeeaaaaase Zoro... My eeeyeees..."
"NO!!"
"Darn you..."
