Ch. 7- Don't Lie
One Piece © Oda
Story and OCs © Me
Later that day, as the Thousand Sunny sailed along the island's shore...
"I don't see the Marines anymore, Nami!" Carrot called from the Crow's Nest. "I think we finally lost them!"
"Good!" Nami replied as she stood at the helm with Brook.
"Looks like it's smooth sailing ahead," Brook said. "We should be able to reach the port town by morning."
"Keep on this course, Brook," said Nami. "Let's hope Luffy, Aika, Sanji, and Blizzard are on their way there, too."
"I'm sure that they are," Brook replied. "They're not the types to give up, you know."
Nami chuckled as she crossed her arms. "Yeah, I ought to know...I'm one of those types."
"Yohohoho!" Brook chortled. "By the way, may I-"
"No," Nami interjected, causing the skeleton to sigh in dejection.
Meanwhile, standing in the doorway of the galley, Derek stood while leaning on a crutch to keep himself balanced. He had just gotten through getting a checkup from Chopper. So far, the little reindeer had given him a clean bill of health. As he stood in the doorway, he watched the banter between the navigator and musician.
'It's weird,' he thought. 'They humor each other like they're really good friends. They're almost like the rest of Langstrom's unit...even in situations like this, they find the time to laugh.'
He took a look around and saw the damage that had been done to the ship due to Big Mom's attack.
'Even in spite of everything they went through...'
"Derek?"
"Huh?" Derek muttered as he realized that Nami was standing beside him.
"You okay?" asked Nami. "You're pretty much just staring into space."
"Oh, I'm fine!" Derek replied. "Thanks for asking."
"If you say so," Nami said as she turned to leave.
"Uh...excuse me, Cat Burglar," said Derek, causing Nami to pause as she glanced back. "You guys don't seem like...typical pirates."
"...Typical pirates, huh?" Nami inquired while putting her hands on her hips. "And what's that mean?"
"Oh! I don't mean any disrespect!" Derek said while raising his hands in defense. "It's just that...when I hear pirate, I think of-"
"Bloodthirsty cutthroats that would sooner throw you overboard than talk rationally?" asked Nami. "Yeah, believe me. I used to think that way, too." She unconsciously placed her hand over her tattoo. "Not anymore, though..."
Derek's eyes softened and he sighed.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't mean to bring up bad memories or anything."
"No, you're fine," Nami answered. "So...you still couldn't get into contact with Langstrom?"
"He must be too far inland for me to get a hold of him," Derek answered. "I know he's probably worried to death about me."
"...You must mean a lot to him," said Nami.
"He cares about all his men," Derek replied. "His reputation is almost similar to that of Black Arm Zephyr. They say that the last time a pirate attacked his men without provocation, he destroyed the entire with his own two hands."
"Yikes," Nami muttered, nervously. "No wonder you're trying to call him."
"I just don't want him to end up making a mistake," said Derek. "You see, I owe Langstrom a great debt. He saved my life, a long time ago...and my family, too."
"You have a family?" Chopper asked as he came outside.
"Yeah," Derek answered as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a photo of a young woman with long, red hair that reached down to her waist, wearing a light blue blouse and a pearl bracelet. Beside her was a young boy wearing a white shirt and a Marine cap on his head, doing the salute as he smiled at the camera.
"Your wife and son?" Nami asked.
"Yeah," Derek smiled. "That's Celia and my son, Keith. They were being held hostage by pirates way back when Keith was barely even walking. I tried to save them, myself, but I ended up getting captured, too...until Langstrom came and saved us all."
"No wonder you're indebted to him," Nami mused. "How old's your son?"
"He's about 4, now," Derek said, "and he's about to be a big brother, soon. Celia and I are expecting a baby girl in a few more months."
"Oh, my god, that's wonderful!" Nami exclaimed.
"Yeah, congratulations!" Chopper added.
"You must be very excited!" Brook chimed in.
"Oh, I am!" Derek added. "But...I'm also worried."
"Why?" asked Nami, causing the Marine Captain to sigh as he scratched the back of his head.
"Well, let me ask you something," he said. "Have you ever had a loved one tell you that they didn't want you to be something you've wanted to be your whole life?"
XXX
Meanwhile, at the Harpy Pirates' ship...the aforementioned pirated crew sat in the galley, gaping in shock as they watched Luffy practically devour everything he could get his hands on. Meat, pasta, bread, rice, and sandwiches disappeared into his mouth, and he showed no signs of stopping.
"This is ridiculous," whispered one of the crew members. "He's already eaten about half our food supply!"
"Shh~!" whispered another. "Don't complain. Captain Pamela said we should give him whatever he wants."
BUUUUUURRP! Luffy let out a huge belch before he continued eating.
"Enjoying everything so far?" asked Pamela.
"Yeah, this is really good!" Luffy answered. "It's not as good as Sanji's, though, but still good!"
"That's good," Pamela said. "I'm glad you like it. My cooks worked hard on it."
Soon, Luffy had finished gorging himself before he let out a monstrous belch, then sighed as he patted his rounded stomach.
"Ahh, man, I'm stuffed," he said. "Thanks a lot for the meal."
"It's no problem," Pamela said. "If anything, I should really be thanking you."
"Huh?" Luffy muttered. "How come?"
"Well...it's because of you that I'm able to so much as walk underneath the sun, again," answered Pamela.
"What do you mean?" Luffy asked with a tilt of his head, causing the Harpy Pirate Captain to chuckle.
"I guess I should explain," Pamela said. "You see, a long time ago, my crew and I sailed into the Florian Triangle while we tried to navigate through the Paradise half of the Grand Line. We accidentally picked up a barrel and it shot off a flare after we pried it open...sound familiar to you?"
"Hey!" Luffy exclaimed. "That's how those guys at Thriller Bark found us!"
"Yeah," Pamela said with a sigh. "I can't believe how naïve I was, back then. By the time we figured out what happened...it was already too late. We were soon taken prisoner on the giant island ship, Thriller Bark." Her eye narrowed, bitterly. "That's when I ran into him...Gekko Moriah."
Flashback
Pamela, back when she had both her eyes and wasn't wearing a bicorn hat, gasped as she turned and saw the shadowy figure of Gekko Moriah, back when he was a Warlord of the Sea.
"KISHISHIHSIHI!" he cackled as he tried to grab Pamela, who tried to shoot him with one of her rocket launchers...but she yelped as she was suddenly struck by his Brick Bats. Before long, she was soon entangled in the webs of the spider rat zombies, who cackled as Pamela struggled to get away. That's when Moriah held up a pair of scissors...and with a malicious grin, he peeled Pamela's shadow off the floor, held the scissors toward the soles of her boots...and snipped the shadow away from her feet, causing her to gasp as she suddenly lost consciousness.
Flashback end
"By the time my crew came to rescue me," said Pamela, "it was already too late to save my shadow." She quietly clenched her fists. "I spent months hiding in the darkness...trying to stay out of the sun for as long as I could." She then looked at Luffy, who stared back at her as she gave him a grateful smile. "So when my shadow came back, I realized somebody must have kicked his fat ass."
"I wanted to kick his ass!" Luffy shouted. "He stole my shadow and my friends' shadows, too!"
"Yeah, I bet," Pamela said. "After that, I wanted to meet you so that I could thank you, personally, for what you did."
Behind her, the other Harpy Pirates whimpered as they comically wept for their captain, one of them even biting on a handkerchief.
"You don't have to thank me," Luffy said. "It's me who should thank you, really. You helped me and my sister."
"The little girl who was with you, right?" asked Pamela. "What are you guys doing, way out here on the island, if you don't mind me asking?"
"Well, we were on a camping trip," Luffy answered, "until those stupid Marines interrupted it."
"Dealing with that spineless Hendrickson is one thing," Pamela said, "but you must have done something really bad to piss off Vice-Admiral 'Lion Fist' Langstrom."
"I didn't do anything to that guy!" Luffy shouted. "I just kicked some Marine ass, that's all! They came after us, first! And he thinks that I killed some guy named Derek!"
"100 Slash Derek?!" Pamela questioned. "That guy's Langstrom's right-hand man!"
"I don't understand it," Luffy said. "Why's that lion guy so pissed at me?"
"Well...it's because Langstrom's got a pretty good reputation," said Pamela. "People say he's like a father to his men. He's very protective of them. Any pirate who so much as even looks at them in a bad way is pretty much beaten to death..."
"...Oh," Luffy said.
"Odds are he doesn't know who was really in the right, here," said Pamela. "I do know this much. Once he's like this, he pretty much stops listening to reason. Some people kinda call it cruel, but I guess when it comes to protecting the people you care for, you gotta send a few heads rolling."
"...I wouldn't really say that," Luffy said as he looked down at the floor, his stomach having slimmed down. "I don't really kill my enemies."
"Really?" asked Pamela.
"I'd rather just leave them to be defeated," Luffy explained. "I don't need to take anyone's life to win in a fight."
"...What if it's not about winning a fight?" asked Pamela. "What if you don't have a choice?"
"Huh?" Luffy muttered.
"Let me ask you something," Pamela said. "When it comes right down to it...are you willing to take the life of your enemies if it means protecting the people you care for?"
Luffy's eyes went wide in surprise.
XXX
"So Blizzard's your brother?"
"Yeah, we were littermates! How is he?"
"He's doing okay."
In the sickbay, Aika sat on a cot while she chatted with Pamela's dog, Angel, who was excited to know about her oldest brother.
"Has Blizzard really grown so big that you could ride on his back?" Angel asked. "I remember he used to be so much smaller than the rest of us! Who'd have thought that that little white runt would grow so huge?!"
"Yeah, he's big, all right," Aika said, "but I didn't know that he used to be a runt."
"I guess he didn't tell you that part, huh?" Angel asked while wagging her tail. "Yeah, he tends to leave that part out, sometimes. I don't think there's any shame in it, really. Just because he was smaller than the rest of us doesn't mean we think less of him."
"That's good," Aika said. "You must love Blizzard a lot, huh?"
"I love all my brothers and sisters," said Angel. "Even if I give them grief from time to time. You should know. You and your brother fight a lot, don't you?"
Aika frowned as she cast her eyes to the floor, causing Angel to blink in concern.
"Umm...actually, Big Brother and I hardly ever fight," said Aika.
"Is that right?"
Aika looked up to see Mizuki walk in with a gentle smile on her face.
"Hey," she greeted. "You feeling okay, now, kiddo?"
"Uh-huh," Aika nodded. "Thanks for helping me, earlier."
"No big deal," said Mizuki. "You're lucky we happened to come along. Of course, Hendrickson's a small fry compared to Langstrom. He's the one we should watch our backs around."
Aika smiled...but her smile soon fell as she looked down at the floor, to Mizuki and Angel's concern.
"What's wrong?" Mizuki asked.
"...Promise you won't tell my Big Brother this?" Aika asked. "I...I kinda want him to come and help me."
"Huh?" Mizuki asked. "Why?"
"Because I don't want him to fight," said Aika.
"What?" Mizuki asked, even more puzzled. "Why? Your brother is pretty strong. I mean...he doesn't have that 1.5 billion-Berry bounty for anything! I mean, he took on Big Mom on her own turf, not to mention took out one of her highest ranking commanders!"
"...And he got a big scar from it, too," Aika pointed out.
"You mean that scar on his hip, right?" Mizuki inquired. "Well...at least it healed up! ...Kinda..."
"That's not the point," said Aika as she hugged her knees. "I...I don't want my Big Brother to fight...and I don't want him to be a pirate, anymore, either."
Mizuki and Angel both glanced at each other, mouths slightly agape before they turned to face the young D. Carrier.
"Why would you say that?" Mizuki asked.
"Because I don't want him to die..." Aika muttered...and almost instantly, Mizuki's eyes softened.
"Aww...I see," she said. "Well, I guess I can see where you're coming from. Being a pirate is a very dangerous thing."
"I know," Aika said. "I know that Big Brother wants to become the King of the Pirates, and...I know that's not fair of me to say, but...it's just how I feel."
"And you never told him this?" asked Mizuki.
"I can't tell him," Aika answered. "He'll hate me."
"No, he won't," said Angel."You're his little sister. You might disagree on something, but that doesn't mean he hates you. I mean...when I was a little puppy, I got into squabbles with my brothers and sisters, all the time, but we always made up in the end. You don't hate Straw Hat...do you?"
"Of course not!" Aika rebuked. "I could never hate Big Brother! He's the only family I have! I love him!"
"Then he'll understand if you tell him," said Mizuki. "You have to be able to talk to him...don't lie and don't keep things hidden from him, even if you're afraid of what he'll say...otherwise, that shows that you don't trust him at all."
Aika bit her lip as she looked down at the floor, again.
XXX
"Here," Pamela said as she handed Luffy a flintlock pistol. "I got a million of these. You can keep this one."
Luffy took the gun in his hand and stared at it. He seemed almost...apprehensive, which was rare even for him.
"Look, Straw Hat, I won't tell you how to live your life," said Pamela. "I'm just trying to give you some advice, here."
"Why would you give me this?" asked Luffy.
"Well...the way I see it," Pamela began, "it's gonna take more than just your fists to protect the people you care for. Sometimes, in a situation where your life or the life of your crew is at stake, you can't afford to hesitate." She narrowed her eye at him. "If you see an opportunity to pull the trigger...then you have to take it."
Luffy stared down at the gun in his hands...his brow furrowing in contemplation. In all honesty, he had never used a gun...at least not to kill. Sure, there was that one time during the assault on Golden Lion Shiki's palace, not to mention those Davy Back Fights, but he never really took a fatal shot at anybody. He didn't really believe in killing anybody.
As Luffy opened his mouth to speak...the ship suddenly rocked, causing everyone standing in the room to grab onto something, just to keep balanced.
"What the hell was that?!" Pamela questioned.
"Straw Hat!" a familiar voice called from outside. "Come out of there! You and Harpy Eagle, both!"
Luffy gasped before he clenched his teeth.
"It's the Lion Guy!" he exclaimed.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Next time on One Piece: Trek!
Pamela: If you want Straw Hat, you'll have to go through me, first! *holds up her rocket launcher*
Langstrom: *in his lion form* Very well, Harpy Eagle...I'll entertain you a bit first before I capture you!
Mizuki: *is trying to help Luffy and Aika escape* You guys get out of here! We'll be fine by ourselves!
Luffy: Are you guys sure about this?!
Mizuki: You need to get back to your crew! Trust me, we'll be okay!
Luffy: ...I guess.
*Pamela is lying on the ground, bloodied and beaten while Langstrom towers over her*
Langstrom: This will end it...
?: Hey!
Langstrom: *turns around* What?! Who are you?!
Sanji: *is sitting on Blizzard's back* A man who came to the call of a woman's aid!
Pamela: *rolls her eye* Oh, brother...
Next time: The Prince Arrives
Sorry about the long wait, but here's the new chapter! Hope you guys enjoy it! And don't worry, there's gonna be lots of action next chapter!
Review, please!
