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 SEVENTEEN
What Is Love?
Emma awoke with a start, looking all around her, but the only other two in the room were Nami and Sumi, and both of them were asleep.
Where is she? Emma wondered, and then realised that Nojiko could be anywhere - just like Garp had been, and the Whitebeard Pirates! Groaning inwardly, Emma looked at her compass, as if it would give her the answers...and, there it was - a tiny beam of light appeared on the compass' surface, and pointed straight ahead.
"Oh..." She said, getting out of the bed quickly. She held the compass out, and the light stayed in one place, but when she moved the compass, the light shifted, and was always pointing east. "So she's that way..."
"Nng...wazzup?" Sumi mumbled, still half-asleep. Her incredibly long hair was covering her face when she raised her head - she looked like Cousin It.
"Never mind, go back to sleep." Emma replied, as she walked towards the door, and Sumi obliged, falling back onto her pillow.
Emma felt like doing that, but she couldn't - Nojiko would be disorientated and confused in this world. She needed help. It would be better if Nami didn't find out at the moment - she would probably just panic.
As Emma walked towards the door of the warehouse (she had decided to take the other exit, to avoid opening the roller-door and waking everybody else up), she held the compass out in front of her, judging where the light of it was. This was no ordinary compass, not by a long-shot. It had the power to change certain people into cats, and show them all where their next Allies were.
As she slid into her shoes, Emma couldn't help but wonder, though...why her? Why had she gotten the compass...well half of it...and why not somebody else?
She was so deep in thought, that she almost walked into the door. "Huh? Why won't it open? It opened yesterday..." She tried opening it with both hands, and then put her foot on the wall, trying to get the door open. She ended up putting both feet on the wall and pulling, like she was in some kind of comedy cartoon.
"You won't get it open that way." A voice said from behind her, and she gasped, her hands sliding off the door and she went flying backwards.
Luckily, Law was there to catch her.
"What did you do to the door?" Emma wanted to know, trying to detach herself from Law's arms.
"Locked it."
"I can see that, Captain Obvious." Emma rolled her eyes. "My next question is, why is it locked?"
"So that you wouldn't run away." He replied.
Emma blinked, and turned around, looking up at him. "Hang on, why would you think I'd...? Oh, because I had a fight with my Mum..." She shook her head. "Law-San, if I ran away every time I had a fight with her, I might as well move out." She raised an eyebrow. "Were you...by any chance...worried about me?"
Law just looked back at her. "It was Garp's idea - everyone just went along with it."
Emma nodded. "Yeah, well...do you think you can, maybe...unlock the door?"
"I haven't got the key."
"Who does then?"
"That would be me." Ace said, leaning against a wall. He had the key on a chain around his neck.
"Ace-Chan, I need that key, I need to go somewhere." Emma stated.
"Where?" Ace and Law asked her in unison.
"Out."
"Out where?" Ace wanted to know.
Emma sighed. She held up the compass, and the little ball of light reappeared. "To wherever this thing leads me." Both Ace and Law stared at it. The beam of light illuminated Emma's face. "It's a matter of life and death, seriously..." She glanced up. "You guys can come with me, if you want. But we have to leave now." She walked over to Ace. "Okay?"
He looked down at her, and noticed how serious she looked. He nodded. "What would I get in return?"
Emma stared at him for a moment, before she smirked, and motioned for him to lean down. When he did, she kissed him, looping her hands around his neck - it was the first time she'd ever kissed anybody, not the other way around.
Ace was surprised at first, but then he returned the kiss, running his hands down her sides to rest on her waist, tugging her closer to him so that their bodies were touching.
Law coughed suddenly, and Emma and Ace broke apart. Ace glared at Law, but then switched his gaze back to Emma when she held up her hand.
Dangling from her left ring finger was the silver key.
She giggled. "Now it doesn't matter whether or not you say yes." She grinned her classic lopsided grin. "So, are you two coming or what?" She went over to the door and unlocked it. "Or else, I'll just go by myself."
The two men looked surprised - damn it, this girl was better than they'd thought.
They followed her into the outside world.
"Guys!" Luffy ran into the kitchen looking panicked. "I think she's run away - I can't find her anywhere!"
"Oh, if you're referring to Emma-Chan," Sumi spoke up, as she lathered more Vegemite onto a piece of toast (Sanji had offered to cook, but a few people had just opted to eat a light breakfast, and Sumi was one of them). She glanced up at Luffy. "She got up early and left."
"That's my point exactly!" Luffy exclaimed.
"Relax, Luffy." Zoro said. "I saw her leave earlier. Ace and Law are with her."
"Oh." Luffy immediately began to look calmer. "Well, where?" He asked, eyeing the plate of bacon in front of Zoro, and calculating his chances of stealing a few rashers before the swordsman stopped him.
Zoro shrugged, correctly interpreting Luffy's look and scarfing down the plate of bacon before his captain could commit grand theft Baconorial Phosphoruschloride.
It was Nami who answered: "She was tossing and turning in her sleep early this morning...what if she had another weird dream?"
The others exchanged a glance.
"Then...where could she have gone today?" Usopp wondered, and a few people shrugged. They would probably find out, later on.
"Oh, by the way, Nami," Luffy pointed at her with a fork that he had just used to spear a piece of pancake with. "What did Emmy do to Law last night, when you guys were playing that game?"
Nami and Sumi exchanged a glance, and grinned. "Oh, that." Nami casually turned a page of her newspaper. "That was 'Truth, Dare, Double-Dare, Kiss-A-Man Or Torture' - she picked Kiss-A-Man, but we told her that it couldn't be Ace."
Sumi giggled.
"Yeah, but then why'd she kiss Law?" Luffy asked, confused. "Does she like him, too?"
Nami and Sumi exchanged another, more serious glance.
Sumi sighed. "Ah, Luffy, men just wouldn't understand and, besides, you're just too young."
"I'm older than you." He pouted.
"No, one girl year equals seven human years." Sumi explained, and the men just stared at her. Sumi just shrugged. "Told you you wouldn't understand." It was because Law has already kissed her, and Emma's the type of girl that doesn't like to just hand out her kisses to any Tom, Dick And Harry...she probably just wants to keep it at two since, to her, kisses mean something that's practically sacred...
Krystal and Mayling walked down the street, shopping bags swinging from their hands already. Hey, it wasn't their fault that all of their favourite stores had been having a sale - or, that they'd both gotten paid recently! They were talking about their martial arts training, and about Emma.
"Yeah, she rang me too, and told me that she couldn't continue with her lessons." Krystal sighed. "It's not fair, she was enjoying them so much."
Mayling nodded. "I know, but they are pretty expensive, especially for somebody that doesn't have a job." The Chinese girl with the glasses let her gaze wander across the street, and then she nearly dropped her shopping bags. "Hey, Krystal, look!" She swung her shopping bag out to point at the black-clad red-head standing on the other side of the street with her back to them. They wouldn't have known that it was Emma, except that she suddenly turned around, and spotted them.
Her eyes widened slightly, and Krystal and Mayling immediately began to cross the road towards their best friend.
"Hi!" Krystal called.
"Hi, guys!" Emma grinned, as she zipped up her jacket quickly. "What brings you here?"
"Shopping." Mayling and Krystal said in unison, holding up their bags.
Emma laughed. "Sounds fun." They noticed that she kept looking up and down the street.
"What are you doing here?" Mayling wanted to know, just as Emma's eyes lit up slightly.
She lifted a hand and waved, and Krystal and Mayling turned to see two guys heading towards them. Their eyes widened slightly. Both men were tall, even taller than Krystal, and could be considered attractive, or even handsome. They both had dark hair, and carried a strange aura about them.
They walked up to them, standing on either side of Emma like bodyguards.
Mayling and Krystal eyed them. The one with freckles and brown eyes was smiling in a friendly, yet somewhat over-confident way. The one with grey eyes and slightly tanned skin was almost smirking, and there was something about him that the girls didn't trust.
"Friends of yours?" The one with freckles asked, still smiling, as he gazed down at Emma.
She nodded. "Umm, yes...this is Krystal, and Mayling, my two best friends in the whole wide world, since we were five years old." She grinned.
The two boys shifted their gazes to Krystal and Mayling, is if assessing them. Krystal shifted uncomfortably - it felt like she was being scanned by some 40th Century Laser Beam. Mayling just eyed both of the boys back, wondering what they were to Emma.
She found out.
"Umm, guys, this is Law - don't ask me why that's his name," Emma said, pointing to the grey-eyed man. "And Ace..." She gestured to the other man and then added, in a voice so soft that they could barely hear her: "My...boyfriend...?"
Krystal and Mayling gasped, and immediately grabbed her by the arms, dragging her a few feet away. They then began bombarding her with questions.
"When did this happen?!"
"What time, day, month and year?!"
"When were you planning on telling us this?!"
"Did he kiss you yet?!"
"Have you had sex yet?!"
Krystal gasped, and rounded on Mayling. "Mayling, you can't just ask people that!"
"Well, why not?" Mayling shrugged. "We're all adults now."
As this was going on, Emma was getting more and more flustered, and then it happened - her hands brushed against the compass, and the greenish light emitted from it.
"What was that?!" Krystal cried but, as soon as the light had appeared, it disappeared - and, so did Ace and Law.
"Aww..." This left Emma mortified, as she desperately tried to figure out how change the two cats back into humans without her two best friends noticing.
Mayling was looking around. "Hey, where did they go?" She asked, her gaze drifting around the street, and moving straight over the two black cats, who were currently standing a few feet away, looking dazed. She turned back to Emma, and put her hands on her hips. "What just happened there?"
Emma shook her head as if to clear it, and said: "Okay, the light - I dunno. Maybe it was the reflection off of a passing car or something. And, as for Law-San and Ace-Chan, well, they had to go to...the physio." Wait, what the Hell did I just say...?
Mayling and Krystal just stared at her.
"The physio?" Krystal asked, eventually, and Emma nodded meekly. Krystal sighed. "Well, they could've at least told you that they were leaving."
Emma didn't say anything.
Mayling suddenly grinned. "So, a boyfriend - you go girl! Tell us everything!"
"But not everything." Krystal added hurriedly, as they began walking. "How did you two meet?"
"Well..."
Law and Ace followed the three young women all over Fremantle, it seemed. They were watching a whole new side of Emma that they hadn't seen before, the side of her that seemed to come out when she was with these two girls, who seemed to know quite a bit about her. But, then again, they'd been friends since they were five years old, so it kind of made sense.
Law and Ace were also curious as to how much Emma would tell Krystal and Mayling. She didn't seem to mind telling the two girls about her problems with her family, although Law noticed that she left out the part about staying the night somewhere other than at home, making it sound like she'd come into Fremantle earlier on that day.
She also left out everything about Law and Ace coming from another world, and instead told her two best friends the cover story, the same one that she'd told her parents.
Every time Krystal and Mayling weren't looking, Emma would pull out the compass and check it, before hiding it again and suggesting that they go in a certain direction.
Their journey took them to the docks, where Law and Ace stayed to the shadows, and watched the three girls walk along the boardwalk and look at the boats, commenting on what they would do if they owned a boat, and about the teacher they'd had that was obsessed with a ship called the Duyfken.
"Remember the song?" Mayling asked, after they'd stopped at Baskin And Robins for ice-cream (Mayling's treat, though Emma had protested).
"Oh God, yeah, who could forget?" Krystal asked, and then the three girls began to sing, quietly.
"Now the little dove's spreading her wings again, four hundred years have gone by. Fremantle town is her bird's nest, gonna make this fledgeling fly..."
They looked at each other, and started giggling.
"Hey, Emma, since when could you sing like that, though?" Mayling asked, and Emma nearly dropped her ice-cream.
"L-like what?" She asked, blinking.
Krystal and Mayling exchanged a glance.
"Emma...is there something that you're not telling us?" Krystal asked.
"Well...umm..." Emma looked down, as she finished the pointy end of the ice-cream cone. "You see...I..." She looked up, and the colour drained from her face.
Mayling and Krystal turned, to see a group of teenage boys clustered around the rocks by the sea. One turned, and they could see that he was holding what looked like a blow-torch.
"Hold it still!" He ordered, and one of the other boys held up what looked like a blue cat. It was a very pretty cat, though, despite the periwinkle blue of its fur, and there were darker blue designs on its front, and on the underside of its tail and back paws. "This is gonna be fun!" He lit the blowtorch.
"Oh my God..." Krystal gasped. She wasn't exactly a fan of cats (she preferred dogs) but this was going beyond animal cruelty - this was evil.
The cat began to struggle, and one of the other boys grabbed its tail and yanked on it, causing the cat to cry out in pain.
"What are we gonna do?" Krystal gasped, and then noticed that Emma was missing. "Emma!" She cried, seeing her red-haired friend running across the road.
Law and Ace were stunned for a second - what was Emma going to do against a group of about eight big and burly young men?!
"Nojiko!" Emma cried, and Law and Ace tensed in shock.
Nami's sister?
Since when? When had Nojiko gotten here?!
Emma leapt straight into the group of boys, grabbing Nojiko in her arms as she rolled, and then landed a few feet away, pushing herself up on one hand, and standing up again swiftly.
"Whoa..." Krystal and Mayling said in unison. Since when had Emma been able to do that?
The boys glared at her. "You little bitch!" One of them said.
They all faced Emma, and produced weapons - one had a baseball bat, one had a crow-bar, another had a machete, and so on and so forth.
Krystal and Mayling watched as Emma's widened, and she quickly put the blue cat on the rocks behind her, standing protectively in front of it, in her fighting stance. She was shaking, but there was a steely glint in her eyes, the one that Krystal and Mayling had seen in their martial arts class.
There was no time to call for help, or the police, or anything - Emma was about to get injured! The boys were either stoned or drunk, or both, and they were all a whole lot bigger than Emma. Plus, they were armed - wasn't there some kind of a law against that in Australia?!
Krystal and Mayling exchanged a glance, and then nodded.
"Hey, stop!" Krystal yelled, and the boys all turned to them.
Krystal and Mayling had assumed their own fighting stances, but this only made the boys laugh.
"What's this, Charlie's-fucking-Angels?" The boy with the baseball bat smacked said bat threateningly into his hand.
"You bitches ruined our fun." Another added.
"Fun?!" Krystal repeated, standing her ground, despite how scared she was. "You guys are sick, and evil!"
Emma, meanwhile, had reached under her jacket, and pulled out a compass-like necklace.
The boys laughed again. "She calls us evil?" One mocked. "What a kid - let's teach her a lesson." He suggested, and two other boys nodded...and rushed at Krystal.
Krystal shrieked, but she didn't move. Either that, or she couldn't. This was it - she was going to die! She closed her eyes, and then she heard a sickening crack, followed by a thud.
That...wasn't me?
Krystal opened her eyes when she heard Mayling gasp, and looked down to see the two boys that had just been about to attack her, lying in a pool of blood on the ground. The blood was coming from wounds on the sides of their heads, which appeared to have been smacked together.
And, standing over them, was Law. He calmly shook a few drops of blood off his hand, and glanced at Krystal and Mayling, smiling.
"That wasn't as bad as it could have been." Law said.
Krystal and Mayling just stared at him, whilst sharing the same thought. Not as bad? And why is he smiling like that?!
Behind Law, Ace was making short work of the other boys, saving the one with the machete for last. It flipped up in the air, before landing point down in the concrete by the head of one of the unarmed boys that Emma had suddenly kicked to the side of the head; he was either unconscious or dead - Krystal and Mayling didn't know which.
They just stared in shock, unable to quite believe what had just happened.
"Nojiko! No, Nojiko!" Emma was suddenly exclaiming, her voice panicked, as she leaned over the very still blue cat. "Law-San, help!" She called, and he went quickly over to her, as did Ace.
Law examined the blue cat quickly and carefully, with the skill of a practiced surgeon, and then he said: "She was struck to the head with some form of blunt object, and she has a few broken bones...there's also what looks like a piece of glass buried in her side. She'll be fine, as long as we get her back to the warehouse soon. Otherwise, she'll die."
Emma gasped. "Ace-Chan and I will bring her back - you go ahead and do what you need to do to prep!"
Law nodded, brushing a hand across the side of her face before he turned and took off running.
"Oh, and tell the others I'm bringing the girls with me!" Emma yelled after him, before switching her gaze to a shocked Krystal and Mayling. "Guys, I...I promise, this will all make sense soon. You're going to see and hear some things that won't, but I promise you that I will tell you everything you need to know. But, right now, we need to get Nojiko home!" As she picked up the blue cat carefully, her gaze turned intense. "Okay?"
Krystal and Mayling hesitated, before nodding.
None of the others were sure what to think when Law rushed into the warehouse alone, and began prepping his med-bay.
"Law, what happened?" Luffy asked, because nobody else did. "Where's Emmy?"
"She's coming." Law replied, his face in one of its rare serious expressions, as he concentrated. They watched him take out a few medical supplies, which included sterile thread and a needle. "There's been...an accident."
"Is she okay?" Zoro asked tensely.
Law nodded. "She is, but...somebody else isn't."
"Not Ace!" Luffy gasped.
"No." Law shook his head, and then muttered something under his breath that sounded like: "Unfortunately..." He raised his voice. "No, Emma-San had another dream last night, and ended up bringing somebody into this world, to save them from the World Government."
A few of them glared at Garp, just because he was a Marine, and he was there.
He was just about to say something, when Nami interrupted him. "Who is it?" She wanted to know, just as the door of the warehouse swung open, and Emma came hurrying in, followed by Ace and two unfamiliar girls.
That last point was just about to be pointed out, when Emma rushed straight up to Law, who said: "Put her on the med table." Emma did so, transferring the bloodied blue cat to the table. "Transform her back into a human - that will make it easier for me, and for her to heal."
Emma nodded, and touched a hand to her compass. At once, the injured blue cat shimmered, and transformed into a young woman with blue hair...
"Nojiko!" Nami screamed, her face draining of all colour, the same way that Emma's had done before.
Law glanced quickly up at Emma. "Get her out of here." He said softly, taking out his scalpel. "Chopper-Ya, Sumi-Ya, you two stay." He added, as the two other doctors stepped forwards, and Emma hurried over to Nami, taking her by the shoulders and leading her away.
Nami seemed to be in shock - she could hardly walk by herself. "My sister..." She kept on saying, sounding numb. "Nojiko..."
Sanji appeared suddenly, from the stairwell. "I've prepared afternoon tea for us up on the rooftop - we can wait up there." He suggested, and a few people nodded in agreement.
"Wait, we have a rooftop?" Emma blinked.
"Mochiron, Emma-Chwan." Sanji smiled. "You can also introduce me to your two lovely friends."
They were sitting up on the rooftop, drinking tea and eating macarons, as the afternoon was bathed in an orange glow.
"So, let me get this straight," Mayling said, as she set down her tea cup. She looked around the makeshift outdoor living room that had been set up on the rooftop. There was a rather large coffee table in between all of them, where the tea and macarons were. Krystal and Mayling were sitting side-by-side on a couch and, across from them, sat Ace, Emma and Nami.
Garp had a chair all to himself, and Luffy was sitting on a swivel chair (where had they gotten a swivel chair from?). Usopp was sitting on a couch, next to Zoro, and Sanji was sitting on the other side of the rooftop, since Krystal wouldn't let him smoke near her. Mayling continued: "You're all from another world, which is based on that anime called One Piece, that Emma likes. You're all pirates except for him," she looked over at Garp. "He's a Marine, but they're not always the good guys. Emma accidentally interrupted your war, and made an enemy of herself to the World Government, so now you have to track down some Allies, because the gods told you to?"
Emma nodded. "Yup. In a nutshell." She licked the cream off of her macaron, before eating it. "Any questions?"
"Yeah, only, like, a zillion!" Krystal exclaimed. "Why you?"
Emma shrugged. "Hey, if I knew that, I'd be a god myself. Which would be..."
"Weirder than it already is." Ace finished for her.
They're finishing each others sentences! Krystal realised.
Emma looked serious. "I just know that I want to get stronger...I want to help protect everybody..." She stared out at the sea.
"So, he's training you?" Krystal glanced at Garp, who nodded.
"Yeah," Emma smiled slightly. "It's a bit of 'tough love' training, but it's working. I just have to get strong enough to defeat a Marine named Coby, and then I can stop turning into a cat every time I travel to the other world. It's a world of super powers and sea monsters and mermaids..."
"Mermaids!" Krystal looked thrilled - her favourite movie of all-time was The Little Mermaid, after all.
"Okay..." Mayling adjusted her glasses. "I know a little bit about the anime One Piece. It's also a world of fishmen that don't like humans, sea monsters that eat people, and a corrupt World Government." She looked over at Luffy. "So, you're the main character? You can stretch like rubber because you ate some weird fruit, and your name's Monkey-something, right?"
Luffy nodded, grinning. "Shishishi! That's right! I'm Monkey D. Luffy, and I'm gonna be King Of The Pirates!"
Garp glared at him. "No you're not!" He yelled.
"Yes, I am!" Luffy protested. "The author guy said I could!"
He's not talking about Eichiiro Oda now, is he? Mayling wondered, before she glanced at Emma. "Hey, so there's four more Allies left, including a Princess, right?"
Emma nodded, and Sanji sighed dreamily. "Hai...Hime-Sama...I can't wait to meet her..." The cook said.
"Typical Ero-Cook." Zoro muttered.
"Shut up, Mossball!" Sanji snapped.
"Umm, are they always like this?" Krystal said, switching her gaze from Garp and Luffy to Zoro and Sanji.
"Yeah, but don't worry about them." Emma replied. "They fight like that, but they really love each other."
"Hey!"
Emma ignored them. "You can probably tell, but Mr. First-Mate over there's a swordsman, who practices the three-sword style Santoryu. His name's Roronoa Zoro - remember it, because he's gonna be the World's Greatest Swordsman."
"Pirate King and World's Greatest Swordsman..." Krystal mused, and both Luffy and Zoro smiled, glad that Emma's best friend understood it.
Sanji, having finished his cigarette, was suddenly kneeling before krystal and Mayling. "And I am Sanji. I am enchanted to meet you, beautiful friends of Emma-Chwan."
Krystal and Mayling just stared back at him, unimpressed.
"Don't mind him," Emma smiled gently. "He's a ladies man. He's going to die of lung cancer, but he's also a really strong fighter, and a cooking god."
Sanji, of course, was very thrilled. "Ah, Emma-Chwan, calling me a cooking god is just so wonderful of you, my dear!"
Usopp rolled his eyes. "She did call you a cooking god, but if you were listening, she also said that you'd die of lung cancer."
Sanji ignored this again.
Emma and Usopp just sighed, and Emma turned back to Krystal and Mayling. "This is Usopp - he's the Straw Hat crew's sniper."
Usopp looked proud. "I'm also a brave and fearless warrior of the sea! I once took on over a thousand zombies, and walked away unscathed!"
"Hey, fearless," Zoro said to him. "There's a centipede on your leg."
Usopp looked down and, upon seeing the lightish brown biting insect, let out a very manly girlie scream, as did Emma - she leapt up and dashed out of centipede's way, hiding behind Garp.
"Sc-scary!" She exclaimed.
Ace just smiled, and clicked his fingers. The centipede immediately burst into flames, making Usopp yelp.
"Ace ate the Mera-Mera No Mi," Luffy explained to a shocked Krystal and Mayling. "So, he can control fire."
"No, he is fire." Zoro reminded him.
"On fire, half the time." Emma grinned, still in hiding.
"So are my pants - help!" Usopp cried, and so Ace got rid of the flames, leaving a slightly sticky mess where it had once been. Usopp frowned. "Oh, thanks a lot."
"Anytime." Ace grinned, and then looked over at Emma, who was still holding onto Garp's arm (Garp didn't mind). "It's okay, Emiko - the savage beast has been smitten."
Emma nodded, and came back to sit down, tucking her legs up as she did. "I don't like centipedes." She admitted, shuddering. "Give me Akainu instead - I can handle him over a centipede, any day."
"Who's Akainu?" Krystal wanted to know, and it was Garp who answered.
"He's an Admiral of the Marines." There was a slightly dark tone to Garp's voice, that none of them missed. "His real name is Sakazuki, but Akainu is the name he's most well-known by. He's a strident follower of Absolute Justice, and has led many a successful battle against pirates that deserved their punishments."
"H-how can you say that?!" Krystal cried. "Your own grandsons are pirates, in case you didn't notice!" She glared at him.
"Krystal, it's okay." Emma said soothingly, before an argument could break out (a battle of wills between the stubborn Garp and the opinionated Krystal could last for days). "Grandpa Garp may not say it, but he's not terribly fond of Akainu." She set down her tea cup. "After all, Akainu tried to kill both Luffy and Ace, and me as well. He's a vicious extremist, and is infamous for his cruel methods and brutal actions."
Krystal noticed that Emma's hands were shaking. "I...I can't believe you got mixed up in all of this, Emma..." She whispered, unaccustomed tears coming to her deep brown eyes.
Emma looked up, surprised by the wavering in Krystal's voice. "Hey, don't worry about me! I've got these guys on my side," she motioned to the other pirates. "Plus, I have a power - it's called the Ribon-Ribon No Mi! Don't worry about me," she repeated, a little more firmly this time. "I'm a pirate now, and yes Grandpa, I admit it openly." She stood up, and walked over to the edge of the rooftop, shouting for the entire world to hear: "I'M A PIRATE!"
"GOOD FOR YOU!" Some random shouted back, and Emma cringed, and dashed back to her seat.
"So, you consider yourself to be one of them now?" Mayling asked, a very serious look on her face.
"Yes." Emma said, facing her. "I've been in battles, and I have a super power. I can't go back now."
"Do your parents know?" Mayling wanted to know.
"No!" Emma shook her head. "And you can't tell them! You can't tell anybody! I'm in enough trouble as it is."
"What do you mean?" Krystal asked her.
Emma stared down at her hands. "You know that ship that appeared in Dunsborough? Well, that belonged to Ace's captain, Edward Newgate - also known as Whitebeard. The police in this world have made a connection between me and it."
Krystal gasped. "What?!" She and Mayling exchanged a glance. Krystal then noticed that Nami hadn't spoken for the last half an hour. She'd just sat there, staring at her tea cup. "Hey, Nami, right?" Nami glanced up at her. "The blue-haired girl in there, Nojiko...she's your sister, right?"
Nami nodded, and then she elaborated. "Like Luffy and Ace, Nojiko and I aren't blood-related, but...
"It doesn't matter." Sanji finished for her.
Hmm... "No, it doesn't." Krystal agreed, and Nami smiled slightly at her. "I'm sure that your sister will be fine, Nami."
"Sure she will be." Emma smiled. "With Law-San, Chopper and Sumi-Chan looking after her, why wouldn't she be?"
"Oh, that's right, Chopper's the doctor of Luffy's crew, isn't he?" Mayling remembered. "What kind of an animal is he, though? A dog?"
"I am not!" Chopper had suddenly come up to the rooftop, just in time to hear that.
"Whoa, really bad timing." Zoro muttered, rolling his eyes.
Krystal nudged Mayling, and then smiled at Chopper. "I can tell that you're a reindeer - you're really cute!"
"Oh boy..." Emma muttered, as Chopper gave his standard reply and reaction to Krystal's comment. She looked up, as Law appeared as well. "How is Nojiko?" She asked, and Nami looked up quickly.
"She's still unconscious, but she'll be fine." Law said, and looked at Nami. "Sumi-Ya's with her now, but you can go in there if you want. Only you, mind." He added, and she nodded, practically running past him to get to the stairs, her orange hair flying out behind her.
"See, what did I tell you?" Emma said. She smiled, as Law sat down on the couch where Nami had originally been sitting. "Chopper ate the Hito-Hito No Mi," she said to Krystal and Mayling. "It made him kind of half-reindeer, and half-human, and incredibly smart, as well."
"Aww..." Chopper rubbed the back of his head, and blushed. "That doesn't...make me happy...or anything..."
"Clearly." Emma rolled her eyes, before nodding her head to Law. "And, this is Trafalgar Law, the captain of the Heart Pirates, as well as their doctor. He ate the Ope-Ope No Mi...it means 'operation', so please don't ask me to elaborate."
"Why?" Law smirked at her. "Does it scare you?"
"Yes, Law-San." Emma admitted, as Law's smirk grew. "Very much so."
"What about that other girl, Sumi?" Krystal wanted to know.
"She's a member of the Whitebeard Pirates," Ace explained. "She used to be the doctor of my crew, until we joined the Whitebeard Pirates."
"Sumi-Chan is cool, she ate the Hito-Hito No Mi, Model: Tenshi." Emma added. "So, basically, she's an angel." She shrugged.
Ace rolled his eyes, and grinned. "Yeah, with black wings."
Emma elbowed him playfully. "I'm gonna tell her you said that."
"Tell who he said what?" Sumi's voice said, as she came up onto the rooftop. She tossed Emma's mobile phone to her. "Here, Emma-Chan - your parents have messaged you eighteen times."
Emma groaned. "I guess I have to go home some time..."
"No, you don't." Ace told her, just as he fell asleep.
"Don't mind Ace-Chan, he's narcoleptic, and falls asleep at any given moment." Emma told Krystal and Mayling. "And, uh, yeah I do," Emma sighed, as she jabbed Ace in the side. "I have TAFE tomorrow, and I haven't done my homework."
Law rolled his eyes. "Good to see you're keeping on top of things, Emma-San."
"Shut up!" She snapped, glaring at him, but there was a slight, lopsided grin tugging at the corners of her lips. "I've been busy saving everyone's bacon."
Ace woke up suddenly. "Bacon? Where?!"
Emma laughed. "Ace-Chan, go back to sleep, love." She tugged at his hair, playfully. "This conversation's too serious for you." She gave him a quick kiss.
Law smirked. "Careful there, Emma-San - I hear stupidity is contagious. You'd probably need an amputation to get rid of it. Want me to do it?"
"I'll survive, but what about your sadism, Law-San?" She replied smoothly. "Are you sure you don't need a shot to fix it?"
Luffy and Usopp laughed. "She got you there, Law!" Luffy grinned. "Shishishi...what's sadism?"
A few people groaned, as Emma and Ace started laughing.
Law just smiled, and settled back in his seat, carefully adjusting his position to sit closer to Emma, and noticing that Ace did the same thing.
Krystal and Mayling exchanged a glance.
Later on, as they were leaving (Emma had left as well, getting into her car and driving away at a snail's pace, because she didn't want to go home), Krystal and Mayling mutually avoided discussing the things that they had just seen and heard, and instead talked about one thing in particular.
"You noticed it too, right?" Mayling said to Krystal, who nodded.
"She's so comfortable around them." Krystal murmured, swinging one of her shopping bags from her hand. "She laughs with them, she teases them, she sits with them...they treat her like she's one of them."
"But she's not..." Mayling muttered. "She's not from the same world as them...I can't believe she got mixed up in piracy and wars..."
"Still...I could see it in her face..." Krystal mused. She smiled. "She cares about them, and she really does want to help them...perhaps...this is..."
"What will make Emma most happy?" Mayling suggested, and she smiled too, but it was a sad smile. "Like that Ace guy...he's really fallen for our Emma, hasn't he? But...so has that doctor, Law..."
"Oh, I will simply not allow this." Krystal said firmly. "They will not put Emma in that position, at all."
"You sound like an evil mother-in-law." Mayling rolled her eyes. "Can't you just picture Emma as a bride, wearing a dress that you designed for her, with either Ace or Law at her arm, dancing to the Sailor Moon theme song at her wedding reception?"
"Thinking a bit too far ahead, aren't we?" Krystal rolled her eyes. "Well...as long as she's happy, then who are we to stand in her way?"
"Yes," Mayling agreed. "Those two will have plenty of opportunities to protect her, the way real men should."
"I think Emma can protect herself." Krystal pointed out.
"Against an entire World Government?"
"Touché."
That went so well! There was trust and understanding on both sides, and I couldn't have hoped for a better outcome! Emma thought, as she walked up the driveway towards the house. Now, if only that same outcome would happen with my parents...
She walked into the house, to find both her parents sitting in the living room with red wine, as they watched The Biggest Loser.
Lee glanced up.
"Emma, come and sit." It wasn't a question.
"In a second." Emma replied. She wanted to go down to her room and make a quick call to the warehouse, to see if Nojiko was okay (not that anything would have happened since she rang two minutes ago for the fourth time, but you never knew).
She walked down the hallway, to her closed bedroom door, and tried the door handle.
It was locked.
Emma stared at the door, feeling a hollow feeling in her chest, before turning and stomping back out to the living room, where she flung herself into a chair.
"What?!"
Her Dad mimicked her, and then snapped: "Listen to what Mum has to say!"
Emma listened.
Lee said: "What is wrong with you lately, Emma?! We rang you yesterday to talk to you, and you end up involving complete strangers in our private family business! Who was that?!"
"He was..."
"You know, I would have thought that having a boyfriend would teach you to be more responsible, but clearly I was wrong!" Lee told her.
"I only just..."
"You don't do anything around the house!" Lee went on. "Dad and I are both holding down jobs, and you do nothing! Your bedroom and the bathroom are a complete pig-sty! You don't offer to help Dad with anything! You're not even trying to be a worthwhile member of the family!"
The words stung Emma, like she'd been slapped. Sure, she'd heard them all before, but that didn't make it any easier. She said: "Mum, look, I only just got a boyfriend, and some really great new friends, as well. I want to explore this further." She straightened up. "And, Ace-Chan really, really likes me."
"Well, what about Krystal and Mayling?" Lee shot back. "Don't lose the only real friends you've ever had."
"What does that mean?!" Emma snapped.
"The reason you got bullied at school was because you didn't make an effort to fit into society." Lee said. "It's society's nature to judge people based on appearance. Just look at you - what did you do, sleep in your clothes? Oh, that's right," she laughed sarcastically. "You spent the entire night at the house of somebody that you've only known for two weeks!"
"There were a whole bunch of us there, it was like a sleepover!" Emma retorted. "Look, this is why I didn't want to talk to you, because you always end up arguing with me!" She stood up.
"Sit down!" Lee snapped, and Emma did so, because where could she go? Not to her room...
"Look, Mum," Emma said, trying to contain her temper. "I actually ran into Krystal and Mayling today, and we spent the day together. They met all my new friends, and everybody got along just fine. It was fun...we had afternoon tea and macarons on the roof..." She smiled, remembering the afternoon, despite the worry for Nojiko's wellbeing.
"Oh, and when were you planning on telling us about this?" Lee wanted to know.
"You didn't give me the chance!" Emma cried.
"Stop squeaking like a retard!" Bruce snapped, and Emma swallowed to stop the tears from forming.
"What are you wearing on your wrist and around your neck?" Lee wanted to know.
Emma glanced at the Baby Den-Den Mushi, and shifted her wrist slightly to try and hide it. "J-just things I...got..."
"They look stupid." Lee said bluntly.
There is probably not a single person in the other world who'd agree with you, Mum. Emma thought, but all she said was: "I don't think so."
"Look, Emma, no offense, but you don't really know these things." Lee said, and Emma gritted her teeth. "I don't want to see you wearing them again - give them to me."
Oh shite, oh shite! Emma thought, in a sudden panic. There is NO way she can have the compass, and she's NOT getting my only means of contacting the others! "No, they're mine, you can't take them from me!" Emma said quickly, standing up again. The compass swung from her neck, catching the light and glittering, and she grabbed onto it. It really was a beautiful compass, with a rich rose-gold rim, a pearly white face and blue and gold hands (is that what they were called?). A pinkish-red stone was in the middle of the hands and, when Emma had it in her hands, she felt something engraved onto the back of it.
How did she not see that before?
Before she could examine it, however, Lee stood up.
"Give them to me right now, or you'll lose your computer, your I-Pod, your...well, everything!" Lee threatened.
"Why do you keep taking things off me?!" Emma demanded to know. She still hadn't gotten those manga and that DVD back yet. "I'm not a teenager anymore, I'm twenty-three (nearly)!"
"While you're in this house you will follow our rules!" Lee snapped. "Now, unless you want to lose your computer..."
"You can't take my computer!" Emma exclaimed. "I have homew-"
But, Bruce had finally had enough. He stood up and, in two strides, had reached his daughter. His hand came out, and back-handed straight across her face, causing her to fall back a few paces, and sink to her knees, as she held a hand to her face, and stared up at her Father. The man she had trusted...the man who had been her hero...the man who had taught her not to be afraid of storms and snakes...
The man that was her Father.
"Don't give me that fucking bull-crap!" Bruce snapped. "I don't want to hear anymore fucking lies! You're nothing but a parasite! I should just kick you out of home!"
Emma was on her feet in a second and, keeping one hand to her face, she grabbed the door handle and bolted out the back.
To her horror, she heard footsteps running after her, and she ran even faster, activating her newly-found strength to hit the bushes at a flat-out sprint.
She managed to make her way over to the other side of the shed and inside of it, and heard her Mum yell from the house: "Fine, then you can just sleep out there tonight! With all the snakes and centipedes!" She slammed the door shut, and locked it.
Emma sank to her knees, finally stopping, and realising that blood was seeping out from between her fingers. Her eyes widened. No! He drew blood! He didn't mean to do it, but he did it!
Just as the tears were starting to escape, the Baby Den-Den Mushi woke up, and rang.
Emma didn't want to answer it, but she knew she had to.
"M-moshi-moshi?" She whispered.
"Hey, Emiko!" Ace said cheerfully. "We got worried when you didn't ring about Nojiko..."
"A-Ace-Chan..." Emma whispered, her voice cracking. "I...I..."
"Emiko, what's wrong?" Ace asked, suddenly tense. "What happened?"
"M-my parents..." Emma could hardly talk. Her throat felt tight, like it had just been squeezed tight-shut. "I...Ace-Chan..."
"Sit tight." He said firmly. "I'm coming to get you."
"Ace-Chan..."
"Just give me half an hour." Ace said, and she could hear him standing up. There was a lot of noise in the background, and Emma suddenly wished that she was there, in the warm and happy excitement that was Sanji's kitchen, rather than here in the cold shed. "I'll be there."
"I'm in the shed at the back..." Emma whispered.
"What do you need?"
"A blanket, and...tissues..." Emma shivered. "Ace-Chan, hurry...I...I need you!" She finally sobbed.
"Give me fifteen minutes."
"...Okay..."
Author's Notes:
. The rooftop scene was a re-write, because I lost the original, as I was writing on my Document Manager Page, but my account decided to log me out when I hit Save, and I couldn't get it back. Life is unfair.
. Ballad Of The Duyfken...listen to it here. youtu . be / gTPfcjypCVc
Chieko Namikaze - Hancock is scary. *Scared* Trust me, though, I know what I'm doing with Ace - Emma - Law. You do trust me? You don't trust me? Okay, I didn't want to have to do this, but...here comes the smoulder. *Eugene Fitzherbert Look* Thanks for the review! *Still Smouldering*
Shingheart of ThunderClan - I doubt that Emma would know how to lead somebody on if it was written down for her! Then again, I could be wrong. ^^ Yeah, it had to be Nojiko - the World Government haven't gotten to Kaya (yet), they're still back with Nojiko! Don't give them TOO much credit!
MsWildLuck - *High-fives you back* Thank you!
Cocoa Liddell - Ace's awesomeness knows no bounds...like Prussia, from Hetalia, lol. Yes, go Ace! *Cheers*
person - don't worry, Hancock's going to show up. She's been SO worried about Luffy, after all but, remember, she's still a member of the Shichibukai...that could be...a very bad thing... _
Mugiwara Wolf Spirite - oh, is that so? I think Impel Down called - they want their sea-stone ditch back. ^^ Of course, girls always get to have the best fun! hmm, well, faced with more Boa Hancock and the fact that Bon Clay wants it to be Emma and Ace...I shall be sticking to my plan, which you do not know what is! *Mwahaha*