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).
~Parental Warning~
The following chapter contains:
. Low-level adult themes
. Infrequent low-level coarse language
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
Heaven Can't Wait
When Luffy opened his eyes to stare at the stunning blue sky, for a second, he wasn't sure where he was. Heck, he wasn't even sure who he was.
The figure who suddenly appeared in his line of vision seemed to know, however, and more importantly she was wearing his hat, so he immediately focused in on her.
"Hiya, Luffy!" Sumi grinned.
"Sumi?!" Luffy blinked in surprise, and then scrambled to sit up, wondering why he suddenly felt so light.
Not in the same way as Sumi, though. The blonde-haired girl was literally hovering right in front of him, looking exactly the same as she had the last time that he'd seen her...when she was...still alive...
Slowly, Luffy began to nod, as Sumi handed him his hat. "Yeah...right...Ojīchan said that someone would be waiting for me when I got up here...I didn't expect it to be you though, Sumi..." He added, as an afterthought.
"Oh, jeez, thanks." She huffed, but her teal eyes were calm. "So then, I take it that you know where you are?" She quizzed him.
Luffy shrugged. "Kinda...Ojīchan said that I'd end up in the Celestial Realm, but the way that he was talking made it kinda sound..." He looked around him, and then back at Sumi. "Well, not like this..."
Sumi nodded understandingly. "Yeah...well, given the circumstances, we felt that it would be better to bring you all up here, first..." She swept her arm out to indicate the seemingly endless field of golden grass around them. "Most people start out on Level Zero," she added. "But...you guys are a special case."
Luffy nodded again, and then he gasped. She'd said 'you all' and 'you guys', as in... "What about Ace?! And Vivi?! And...?!" He looked around wildly.
Where was his Nakama?!
What had happened when Emma had transported them to that rooftop?! The last thing that Luffy remembered was being swept up in a mass of red and gold ribbons and then...he was here.
What had happened to Emma?
"Calm down, calm down," Sumi said soothingly, in a melodic voice not unlike Emma's, that Sumi had usually reserved for her most anxious of patients back when she'd been a nurse. "Firstly, how do you feel?" She regarded him seriously.
"What do you mean?" Luffy just stared at her. "I feel fine." He replied.
"Do you still feel like you?" She wanted to know.
"Yeah, well, who else would I feel like?"
"Hmm..." Sumi reached out lightning fast all of a sudden, and grabbed ahold of the side of Luffy's face. She yanked hard, and Luffy's face did what it would usually do - stretched, and then snapped back like an elastic band, making him fall back.
"Ow!" Luffy complained.
"Hmm..." Sumi said again, this time in an odd voice. "I see...this is very strange..."
"What is?" Luffy have her a Look.
Sumi looked thoughtful. "Most people who come here don't get to keep their Devil Fruit powers, Luffy..." She said slowly.
"You did." Luffy pointed out, pointing to the wings on Sumi's back.
She rolled her eyes. "Okay, you seriously did not just say that..." She groaned. I guess that I was right when I said that one girl year is the same as seven human years...
He just stared at her some more. She was making about as much sense to him right now as he was to her, which wasn't a lot. She shook her head, making her long blonde pigtails swing, and smiled. "Come on, let's go and find the others..." She glanced to her right. "Or, on second thoughts...we probably just have to wait for them to come to us..."
"What do you mean?" Luffy wanted to know, realising that he'd lost his hat again, but he'd found something else on the ground by him instead - three swords which looked very familiar. One of them was even as white as the shirt and trousers that Luffy hadn't even realised that he now had on. The Straw Hat Captain gathered up the swords somewhat carefully, knowing that their owner couldn't be far away and sure enough, when he stood up and turned around, he saw Zoro walking towards him - thankfully with the straw hat.
Zoro, wearing all white (which was weird for him) questioned, would have questioned how Luffy could lose his hat even up here, but seeing as how Luffy was holding Zoro's swords the swordsman couldn't do much other than hand the hat back to his captain. He then took back his swords and glanced ever so briefly at Sumi, who nodded to him.
"Yup, seems like this is the place to be..." She said, almost to herself.
Zoro actually wasn't at all surprised to see their fallen friend standing there, although he had a few things other than her presence on his mind right now. "Where's everybody's else?"
"I'm here!" A little voice piped up before Luffy could answer, and Chopper appeared from behind Zoro, looking a little bit worried but otherwise unscathed. He then gasped, and stared up at Sumi. "Sumi!" He exclaimed. "I thought that we'd never see you again!"
"It's good to see you again, Chopper-Chan." Sumi smiled back down at the little reindeer. "You too, Brook." She added, to the white-clad skeleton who had just shown up silently behind Chopper, making him jump. "And, before you ask, no."
"Good save, Sumi." Usopp commented. He had just arrived, in white like the rest of his Nakama and looking no worse for wear - just slightly confused. "There's Nami." He added, pointing, and they turned to see the young woman in question running towards them, her knee-length white dress and tears from her eyes flying out behind her as she ran through the field of gold.
As soon as she reached Sumi, she didn't say anything, she just threw her arms around her and Sumi, who had been expecting this, returned the hug instantly.
"Daijoubu, Nami-Chan..." Sumi soothed, patting Nami's hair gently. She then looked past Nami's tattooed shoulder, and her serene gaze met the equally serene gaze of Nico Robin. The tall woman, in a slightly longer white dress than Nami's, had just arrived with Sanji; the chef was wearing a white suit and an expression that either said 'I beat smoking' or 'NOW where are we?'.
Considering that the looks on a few other faces matched Sanji's expressions, it was probably the latter.
Realising that nobody standing there before her actually did know exactly where 'there' was right now, Sumi, as she continued to hug Nami, said: "Minna...welcome to Level Seven of the Celestial Realm."
Twister shuddered slightly, as he nearly tore up his little to-do-list. He absolutely hated those Okama, and having to deal with a whole lot of them on their home island had been somewhat of a nightmare for the slightly nightmarish himself God Of Change.
That's why he had saved going to Momoiro Island for fourth to last on the list, because he knew from past experiences that all of those 'guy-girls' (as Little Death called them) flirting with him and calling him 'tall, dark, and handsome' was going to do his head in. Even hunting down the man-hating Boa Hancock and convincing her that, yes, Luffy was going to come back alive and that she should let both him and Law stay on her island when that happened, was a lot easier than the fact that he'd actually had to seriously consider putting on women's clothing just to avoid the hassles with those Okama. He hadn't resorted to that, though, and reminded himself to be satisfied with the fact that, although he had nothing against Sanji, the Straw Hats' chef was going to be stuck on Momoiro Island for two years.
If he and the others succeeded, that is.
Shaking his head now, and wishing that he had more of his power back (not to mention his scythe), Twister ran through his list one more time, to make sure that he'd done everything. His Father had advised him against coming back until he'd restored more of his power - gods could do that, after all, but it was going to take awhile. He hadn't been prepared for how strong the newly awakened God Of Darkness and his First Knight would be, and cursed himself for his carelessness. At least he'd had enough power to make it through the jump between dimensions, and not get the cargo splinched.
After he had unceremoniously dropped both his passengers - Garp and Carue - off on the deck of the Moby Dick, he had found the Revolutionary Army surprisingly close by and let Dragon - whom Twister was actually somewhat well acquainted with - know to expect a visitor in the form of Nico Robin sometime in the near future...he had also spoken to Dragon's second-in-command for quite awhile (after being questioned quite thoroughly about his intentions there by a very feisty human female who knew Fishman Karate for whatever reason).
He'd then headed over to Amazon Lily, since it was also close by, and managed to convince Hancock that he was telling the truth by showing her a section in a copy of that book (the one that Emma's Allies had put together for her) that somebody had managed to convince Luffy to actually write - Hancock had instantly recognised Luffy's scrawly handwriting and style of speech, and demanded to own a copy of the book. Twister advised her to run it by Luffy when she saw him next, and - like Dragon - she had promised to keep the copies of the book that she got given safe.
The same went for that absentminded old man, Haredas, up in Weatheria - after Twister had warned him that if he did not keep the book safe until an orange-haired cat thief got there, then, said thief was going to steal all of his stuff. He also added that the cat thief had an interest in weather science, which Haredas seemed to take note of.
It had been a bit of a decision for Twister to try and figure out how best to handle the next item on his checklist, which was labelled 'Kuraigana Island'. The God Of Change hadn't wanted to give one of the books to Perona, who he discovered was the only significant one actually on the island at the time; but after he'd gone and retrieved Mihawk from Skypiea where Emma had teleported him to, Twister realised that he didn't want to give it to him either. However, Perona had then insisted that he leave the book with them and that she'd make sure that Zoro got it - it turned out that she and Zoro were in fact acquainted with one another, and she was annoyed that Twister had seemingly missed that memo. A quick check of the book by Twister had confirmed Perona's story. Mihawk (who didn't seem to be too pleased about his new tenant) surprised Twister's expectations even further, by adding that he'd make sure that nobody read it - and by nobody he meant Perona, threatening her with eviction which made her hastily agree. Twister suspected that Mihawk's decisions had a lot to do with the swordsman's encounter with Emma.
The next destination for Twister had been the Boin Archipelago, where he met Heracles, the one resident who hadn't been eaten by a man-eating plant and who (more importantly) knew Usopp. After about an hour of the guy repeatedly introducing himself and calling Twister 'Twist-Turn', the warrior had agreed to welcome Usopp back upon his return, and also to keep a copy of the book safe for him.
If he letssss it get eaten by a giant Mercury Fly Trap, then I WILL dissssssssect him...and the plant, too... Twister had thought, as he'd flown away to his next destination, which was the Torino Kingdom.
Little Death had been quite fond of this place, for whatever reason, and so Twister knew how to interact with the locals there. They all seemed to be quite worried about Chopper (who had acted as somewhat of a peacemaker between them and those Masukeredomo Goayu Birds) and good old Shanba had agreed to keep Chopper's copy of the book safe...and promptly handed the book over to his niece, the island's librarian Sharn, for safe-keeping. Well, at least it was going to end up in a library.
Karakuri Island had been up next, where the young but surprisingly helpful Kitton had agreed to keep Franky's copy of the book safe for him...after his cyborg dog Taroimo had literally fired missiles out of his mouth at Twister when they'd first encountered the black-cloaked god in the snow. Twister had flatly told Kitton to take care of the book, and had promised that he'd be back for the kid's Grandfather if he didn't. Kitton has looked terrified, but Twister had felt that the threat would have carried more meaning if only he'd had his scythe.
The God Of Change had actually had some fun upon arriving on Namakura Island, where he and Little Death had been many times before and where he was known as somewhat of an 'advisor' to the poor locals there. Apparently, the Harahettania were all up in arms (somewhat literally) because the 'demon' that they'd summoned to help them get rid of the Long-Arm Tribe had suddenly vanished and they had no way of getting their captured citizens back without his support. Twister had then given them the book, with strict instructions not to read it or else face the wrath of 'Satan', before saying that said demon would return to them...he didn't add that the reunion would be quite short-lived, and just checked briefly to make sure that the captured Harahettanians were safe (they were). He was still trying to figure out what had possessed Chance and Karma to send that perverted skeleton Brook to Namakura to be mistaken for Satan.
And now, after leaving a copy of the book with Ivankov (actually, now that Twister thought about that, he was pretty sure that Sanji's fate of being destined to end up on Momoiro Island for a second time had nothing to do with Fate and Destiny and everything to do with that bitchy sister of theirs), Twister had just three things left to do.
He had to find the Thousand Sunny, which would hopefully be where the Straw Hats had left it (and, if not, then...why not?) and still in one piece (more or less), and take it to where that guy Kuma was apparently waiting for him in the Sabaody Archipelago.
Twister then realised that he'd probably have to go back to the Moby Dick and explain why he'd left Garp and Carue there with no explanations whatsoever. He had a feeling that Garp might not have been able to do it (since he'd been frozen in time until he and the duck had quite literally hit the deck of the Moby Dick, and wouldn't know what had happened anyway) and, while Twister had a sneaking suspicion that Whitebeard himself did know, it would probably be best if he went back there and made sure. Actually, he should've done that first, he decided, but, it was too late now.
Besides, Whitebeard would want to know what had happened to his daughter...maybe that was the reason why Twister had left this until the very end. The worry that both Twister and Whitebeard had regarding Emma right now was very real, and mirrored by the rest of the Whitebeard Pirates. Twister wasn't quite sure if he was going to be answer all of the crew's questions.
Still, he needed to go back there, because he needed Marco for something, and he knew that the phoenix-man was the only one who knew the answer to Twister's question - he also knew that Marco was going to tell him.
He was going to tell Twister where to find Jimbe.
"But...how did we end up on Level Seven, Sumi?" Chopper wanted to know. "Emma said that when most people..." He cast a quick glance at Luffy, who was looking around and didn't appear to be listening, and lowered his voice. "Die, they go to Level Zero where they're judged by the Goddess Of Death..."
"Yeah, and, weren't we supposed to meet Death ourselves?" Usopp wanted to know, although he actually looked kind of glad that they hadn't.
Sanji, on the other hand, looked disappointed. "I wanted to meet Death-Chan..." He lamented.
"You can't call the Goddess Of Death '-Chan'!" Usopp gasped.
"I'll bet that she's just beautiful..." Sanji apparently hadn't heard Usopp, as he stared up at the endless blue sky.
"She is beautiful." Sumi agreed. "And, believe it or not, you did all meet with her, in a way..."
Nami stepped back and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. She was a little bit calmer now, after having woken up all alone in a beautiful field of gold and realising before anybody else what had happened; that the light had finally come for her. She had panicked, before being ultra relieved to find the others shortly afterwards. Having Sumi there helped. "But...how?" She wanted to know, glad to see that she still had her Log Pose and her sister's bracelet on. Like Luffy's hat and Zoro's swords, they seemed to be a part of her packaged deal. "I honestly don't remember anything after teleporting from the hotel penthouse..." She broke to suddenly and looked all around her. Em...Vivi...Ace...and, Law...what happened to them? What about Garp, and Carue?!
Sanji and Usopp had exchanged a glance. Sanji said: "Are you certain that we all met with the Goddess Of Death, Sumi-Chan?"
Sumi nodded firmly. "Pretty sure, yup." She replied.
"Does anybody remember what happened after we teleported?" Usopp wanted to know, and those who were listening (and not either looking around or spacing out) shook their heads. "Because, I'm pretty sure that I'd remember something like that..." He cast a wary Look at Sumi.
"Trust me, long-nosed one, my dearest Su-Ko is positive." An unfamiliar voice from behind Usopp made him jump about a mile, and they all turned to see an equally as unfamiliar man with a stylish brown pompadour standing there. Like the Straw Hats he was dressed all in white but, unlike them he also spotted a pair of feathery white wings and a halo similar to Sumi's.
The Straw Hat Pirates all stared at the unfamiliar man, that is until they noticed a familiar man standing beside him wearing just a pair of long white shirts and a Log Pose.
"Ace!" Luffy was happy to see his brother, despite the odd circumstances, and despite the fact that three of his friends were still missing - with Ace here, Luffy knew that they would soon be reunited with those other three, as well.
"Hey, Luffy." Ace looked slightly tired, but he grinned, as the unfamiliar man walked over to stand beside Sumi. "Guys...this is the former Fourth Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates...Thatch."
Everybody was silent for a moment, realising what Ace had just said. For some of them, the realisation that they were meeting the man who had been murdered by one of his own crew-mates had just driven home the fact that they themselves were dead.
For Nami and Robin, however, it was a slightly different story, because they knew a little bit more about the relationship between Thatch and Sumi. Seeing those two standing there together, with their white wings and halos, created a picture of both sadness and happiness, at least as far as the women were concerned.
They also both realised why Ace had taken so long to come and find them all - he must've been talking to Thatch, trying to get over whatever guilt that was in his mind. Thatch had probably managed to only half convince his friend that the events leading up to this were not his fault.
However...
"You're probably all wondering exactly what happened during that time that you can't remember." Sumi's gaze seemed to drift past them just then. "And, here comes one person who can tell you a little bit more about it..."
Ace and Thatch, on instinct, exchanged a glance, as the others turned to see who Sumi was referring to. Both men knew Sumi well enough to know the changes in her voice, and her tone had just changed to one of...nervousness? Or, regret? Maybe both...?
A quick glance by Ace over his shoulder confirmed that suspicion and the reason why.
Vivi, with her hair that was the same colour as the sky flowing behind her, and wearing the blue sapphire necklace with a white ankle-length dress, was walking slowly towards them.
She picked up the pace, however, when she and Luffy saw each other.
"Vivi!" Luffy exclaimed, hurrying over to her. "Are you okay?!"
"Yes, Luffy-San, I am fine." Vivi's words and her smile reassured Luffy and the others of that, but, they still had questions and she knew it, which is why she held up her hands. "I also know how confusing all of this must be, but I assure you that what Sumi said is true." She chanced a small smile at the blonde-haired girl, who smiled back at her somewhat waveringly. "I've known for some time what needed to happen in order for us to come here, although I don't know the exact details of what occurred on that rooftop." Her blue-grey eyes darkened slightly. "In short...we all died."
Usopp and Chopper gasped. Despite having kind of known this already, it was still pretty shocking to hear it being said like this.
Nami, Robin, Zoro, Sanji, Franky, and Brook remained silent.
Ace was glancing around at the endless field, his dark brown eyes searching.
Luffy just looked at Vivi. "You knew this?" He asked, and she nodded.
"Yes, I meant what I said back in the penthouse." Vivi said quietly. She shifted slightly in the golden grass, looking decidedly uncomfortable. "It was part of my duty as the Decoy Princess...that's...that's why I left Carue behind on the ship, but..." She trailed off, and Sumi decided to help her out by jumping in.
"Oh! I'll field this one, Vivi-Chan!" The blonde said, a little bit too loudly. They all looked at her. "I mean, if it's okay for me to tell them all, that is...?"
"It's alright!" Vivi's voice rose slightly on the last syllable, as she nodded her head quickly.
"I just didn't want to tell any personal details about you if it wasn't okay!" Sumi slightly waved her hands a bit frantically.
"Oh, no, no, I understand!" Vivi, at the same time, unintentionally mirrored Sumi's movements. "Please, go right ahead!"
"Only if it's okay with you!" Sumi told her.
"Of course it is!" Vivi replied.
Chopper, Usopp, Franky, Zoro, and Brook were looking back and forth between Sumi and Vivi, almost as if they were watching a tennis match. They literally had no idea what was going on.
Nami, Robin, and Sanji did, however, and merely exchanged glances.
Ace and Thatch, however, also exchanged a glance and then nodded to each other. Ace took Vivi by the arm and guided her away, followed by Thatch leading Sumi, so that the two girls could finally have a talk and clear up what had happened back on Dawn Island. Sumi, right before she had died, may have been able to more or less apologise to Vivi, but the two girls were still unsure of how to react to each other.
Thatch had explained to Ace that Sumi still felt regret over the way that she had treated Vivi, all because she'd had doubt in the decision made by the gods to make a real princess the Decoy Princess; Ace was also surprised to learn that Sumi had wondered if Vivi even should have had to give up her country like that...she had sensed Vivi's sadness and pain regarding that issue, and her worry had come across as resentment.
Luffy, meanwhile, wanted an answer. "Hang on, wait!" He called to them. "What about Carue?! And Emmy! Not to mention Ojīchan!" He added, as an afterthought.
"Ask the one beside you!" Ace called back, and Luffy jumped when he realised that Law was standing right next to him. He hadn't even heard the surgeon come up - none of them had but, wearing all white like the rest of them and with his nodachi on his back, Law easily became a part of the conversation.
"Garp-Ya and Carue-Ya have been taken back to our world," Law said calmly, looking perfectly at ease. "By the God Of Change." He added.
"Twister..." Nami remembered, still shuddering a bit at the thought of that slightly creepy god.
Law nodded. "It was thanks to him and his Father, the God Of Time, that you were all spared the sights of your own deaths at the hands of raw chaotic energy."
A few of the others shuddered as well. There was a darkness behind Law's tone that they didn't like. 'Raw chaotic energy' just sounded...unparalleled...
A sudden thought occurred to Sanji, just then. "What about Emma-Chan?!" He wanted to know.
"Y-yeah, and what about her world?" Chopper spoke up, his voice trembling. "Did the chaos energy Erase it, like Little Death said it would?"
Law glanced down at him. "Actually, tanuki, the God Of Time has agreed to keep Emiko's world in that same state of suspension for as long as he can, so it hasn't been Erased...yet..." He added.
"I wish that you wouldn't say 'yet'..." Chopper mumbled, and then he gasped. "Hey! I'm a reindeer!"
Nami glanced at Law, and he glanced at her. The navigator said: "Did Em see...what happened?" She had to know.
Law sighed. "Hai...as did I. Despite the fact that time had been frozen, at that instant..." He trailed off.
Nami nodded, slowly. "It still would've been pretty harrowing for you two to have seen that..." She realised.
"So," Luffy spoke up just then. "Where's Emmy now?" He wasn't going to feel a hundred percent okay with this all until he had all of his Allies here.
Law gestured silently to his right, and they all looked up to a very small hill, where a short white-clad figure stood with two taller figures, one in black robes and one in white robes.
"Who...?" Luffy squinted. "Who's she talking to?"
"Is that the same two people who showed us Emma's past?" Usopp said suddenly, producing his spyglass from seemingly nowhere and squinting through it. "I think that it is..." He confirmed. They were still some distance away from him. Usopp wasn't sure if they were there same man and woman, but if they were then the man was still really big - almost about the same height as Whitebeard, Usopp realised - although he had the hood of his white cloak up. Therefore, Usopp instead focused in on the woman since her hood was down. He adjusted the spyglass a bit more. "The woman in the black cloak has long strawberry blonde hair and freckles..."
"Mellorine!" Sanji exclaimed, alerting them at that moment to the fact that it was the same woman after all.
"Trust you to remember that." Zoro rolled his eyes (eye) and Sanji glared at him (with his one visible eye).
"She's giving Emma a hug," Usopp went on, ignoring Sanji and Zoro, and still looking through his spyglass. "And, she just took the flower out of her hair and put it in Emma's hair..."
"Why would she do that?" Franky wanted to know.
"Beats me." Usopp shrugged. "I don't even know who she is." He focused in on the hill again. "Now, the woman and the big man are disappearing, and some ribbons just appeared and...whaa!"
Emma hadn't been entirely sure what to do when she had opened her eyes and found herself staring at a pair of slightly familiar brown eyes belonging to an unfamiliar person...who looked incredibly relieved to see Emma, confusing the poor young woman even further until she spoke.
"I'm so glad that you're alright!" The woman whispered.
Her voice sent what felt like an electric shock straight through Emma, who had sat up and now swung her head around to stare at this woman in shock.
The woman pulled down the hood of her cloak, revealing strawberry blonde hair that fell in waves down her back. A red hibiscus decorated one side of her hair, but it was her face that drew Emma in the most, and she realised then and there why the woman's eyes were suddenly so familiar to her.
With a warm and sincere smile that lit up her entire face, right down to the last of the freckles that was scattered across her nose, Portgas D. Rouge gazed back at Emma, with a look that basically said that Rouge had been wanting to meet Emma as much as Emma had wanted to meet her.
Rouge stood up and then held out a hand to Emma, who took it. She pulled the younger woman to her feet, which is when Emma suddenly became aware of the other person.
Normally, she would have immediately jumped back, except...all of a sudden, she just knew who this was. Not from the fact that this stranger in the white hooded cloak was so damn big (probably from Samoa), nor from the slightly overconfident aura that he seemed to carry about him.
No, Emma knew, purely because this man was here with Rouge, that he was Gol D. Roger.
She was standing in the presence of The Pirate King.
And, more than that, she was standing in the presence of Ace's parents...the parents of the man that she loved...
Emma gulped, and then her gaze followed where Roger seemed to be looking; she was unable to see that far until Rouge handed her her glasses.
"Thank you." Emma replied automatically, and with her glasses on she was able to see her Allies in the field far away...she was able to make out who as who, and even recognised Sumi with her white wings and...the man who was with her must be Thatch. Emma looked around quickly for her own partner, and breathed an audible sigh of relief. "Thank God, Ace-Chan, you're okay..." She then sighed. "Oh, what am I saying? None of this is okay! They all had to die because they're my Allies! How is that fair?!" She asked nobody in particular; Roger, however, chose to answer her.
"Everyone always thinks that he's fair, but, trust me kid, Life's not always like that." Roger had that same voice that Emma recognised from the first and second opening themes from the Funimation English dubs of One Piece.
"Makes sense." Emma mumbled, still watching her Allies, and correctly interpreting that Vivi and Sumi needed to clear some things up when Ace and Thatch led them away. "If he was fair then he wouldn't have let me save Ace-Chan and Luffy at Marineford only for them to have die anyway...not that this is Life's fault, that is..." She added, closing her eyes briefly for a second, and so she didn't see the look that Rouge and Roger exchanged. "I wonder if they feel used...?" She wondered out loud all of a sudden. "Like, did they stay alive just so that they could meet me and then we'd all come here and..." She suddenly clapped her hands over her mouth, realising what she'd just said. "Even if that's the case, Boss probably feels bad about it too..." She mumbled, shaking her head. I can't blame this on them, it's not their faults...
Rouge put a hand on her shoulder. "You sound just like your Mother, you know?" She said, much to Emma's surprise. "Even if she was angry at someone, she would always be trying to figure out a reason for why they did what they did. It's the reason why she had so many friends..."
Emma looked shakily up at her. "R-really?" Rouge nodded. "Y-you were friends with her, weren't you? With...Edward Undine...?"
Rouge's smile turned sympathetic, guessing Emma's thoughts. "It's unfair...that I got to spend so much time with Di-Chan, and you barely know anything about her at all." She regarded Emma. "You look like her, you act like her...but..."
"We're all just children of the sea?" Emma finished, and was surprised when Rouge laughed.
Roger also chuckled slightly. "There's a fair amount of Newgate in her, too." He commented.
"Oh." Emma thought about this. "Well, thank you." She tilted her chin up slightly.
Roger laughed outright then, and so did Rouge.
"I knew I liked her." The strawberry-blonde nodded.
"Did you guys know?" Emma asked all of a sudden. "Like...were you watching and did you know...who I really was?"
"Probably a right bit more than you did!" Roger told her.
"Ro-Chan..." Rouge rolled her eyes. She smiled at Emma. "Don't listen to him. There was a lot of 'what if's' and 'it can't bes' when we saw you on that day...at Marineford..."
Emma glanced down at the golden grass by her feet, and then looked back up when Rouge suddenly hugged her, startling her.
"Thank you!" Rouge said, with so much feeling that Emma was absolutely frozen to the spot. "For what you did for my son...for what you continue to do for him...Emma, I can't begin to thank you enough..."
Emma felt something wet on her shoulder, and realised that Rouge was crying a little bit. She glanced at Roger then, and saw his dark eyes beneath his cloak, looking back at her.
"I don't know...how to be what you people all think that I am...I just don't want to lose you..." Emma found herself saying, and then she coughed. "No...Rouge-San...I should be..." She hugged the other woman back, realising that her cloak was hiding her wings, and she wondered if they looked like Sumi's wings, and Thatch's wings. Did Roger have wings, too? "I'm just so glad...that you think that I'm okay for your son..." She drew back from Rouge, who was looking at her with suddenly bright eyes. "Not because of who I am, but because...I'm shy...and lazy...and stubborn..." Emma hung her head. "And, I have a short-temper...I'm moody..." She began to speak very fast. "I'm always late...for everything! I hate to be interrupted, and told what to do! I lose focus very quickly...umm..."
Rouge suddenly reached up, took the flower from out of her own hair and placed it in Emma's hair, effectively silencing the younger woman.
The look in her eyes was gentle, and Emma was somewhat reminded of her own Mum...of Lee, back in Perth, frozen in time and waiting for Emma to do what only she could do.
Rouge placed a hand on Emma's shoulder, understanding what the younger woman was feeling and also why she couldn't say it.
Undine had been just as unsure of herself, until she'd warmed up to people. And, she'd also cared about others...which was a virtue that Rouge could see in Emma as well, even if Emma couldn't see it in herself.
Roger also reached out, and placed a hand on Emma's other shoulder. "None of that matters." He told her gruffly. "You are who you are, and my son loves you for it."
Tears pricked Emma's eyes. "I...I love him, too..." She whispered. She swallowed. "I said...that neither God nor Government could ever stop me, and so...yeah..." She suddenly looked at Roger. "You caused a lot of issues for the World Government and you STILL continue to do it...what's your secret?"
Roger laughed again. "You'll have to find that out for yourself, kiddo!" He told her.
"Aww..." Emma sighed. "Well, at least they'll always remember me as the kid that angered Akainu enough to trust a nine hundred year old pink-haired child!"
"That's a good start." Roger replied. And, he meant it.
"See? You're already making waves." Rouge clasped Emma's hand briefly. "It's going to be okay, Emma." She added. "Now, go on - they're all looking at you."
"Oh, dear God no." Emma groaned.
"You're the last one to come to and join them." Roger added, and the grin was evident in his voice. "Don't keep my son waiting." He added.
"But...I have to...walk all that way..." Emma sighed, half gesturing down the hill and across the golden field.
"No, you don't." Roger and Rouge said together.
"But...Death said...that everybody loses their powers..."
"You lot..." Roger's voice said, as he and Rouge both vanished. "Aren't like everybody else..."
"You never have been..." Rouge added.
Which was enough for Emma to reach up and place her left hand to her compass - realising something awful when she did - and say: "Ribon-Ribon No Transport!"
Usopp suddenly cried out, as Emma appeared right in front of him in a flurry of ribbons. "Don't do that!" He scolded her, wondering if it was possible to die twice because she'd scared him half to death!
"Well, don't spy on people." Emma wasn't even looking at Usopp, she stared down at the golden grass.
Her Allies who were there crowded around her.
Emma was wearing a white dress that was even longer than Vivi's, as well as her compass and the red heart necklace around her neck. She was also staring at her wrist, and, everybody near to her understood why when they saw.
"Su-Chan..." Emma was grimacing, staring at the DenDen Mushi.
"Oh...Em..." Nami put an arm around Emma's shoulders.
"Is that...I mean...?" Usopp seemed to be struggling with finding something to say.
Emma just continued to stare at the Baby DenDen Mushi, which was now sporting a pair of pink wings and a glowing yellow halo.
She'd forgotten to take the Baby DenDen Mushi off. It was dead, just like the rest of them.
Brook suddenly stepped forwards, and took out his violin - where had he gotten it from?
He began playing a song, and Emma found herself listening, realising that she knew the song that Brook was playing even though she had never thought that it should be played on a violin.
"Angel, I know you are a friend..." Emma sung for a little bit, wiping her eyes with the back of her right hand, and smiling as the Baby DenDen Mushi on her wrist woke up and did a double take at her wings, before yawning in a nonchalant way.
"I didn't expect that to happen." Nami admitted, smiling slightly.
"Me either..." Emma replied, shaking her head. "I completely forgot...about Su-Chan..." She held up her wrist. "I'm sorry, sweetie..." How could I have forgotten?
"Oh..." Sumi had suddenly appeared at Emma's side, and the Baby DenDen Mushi looked over at her. "Emma-Chan..."
"What...?" Emma cringed back. I killed it after all!
"Now she looks even MORE like me!" Sumi exclaimed, throwing her arms around Emma, who was startled.
"Sumi-Chan...!" Emma had just spied Ace, Vivi, and Thatch past Sumi's wings, and she was feeling a range of emotions right then.
Happiness...relief...disbelief...nervousness...
Su-Chan seemed to sigh just then, and went back to sleep.
As Sumi let Emma go, and Ace hurried to Emma's side - Law was already on Emma's other side - Thatch decided to speak up again.
Emma stared at him. I never thought that I'd get to meet you...
Thatch was looking at her. He understood. He knew about the show from her world...even more so, though, he understood her nature. It was like Sumi's, in a way. He was grateful to Emma for being there for Sumi, although he wasn't going to say it right then and there. She had enough to deal with.
"Ahem..." Thatch nodded, smiling slightly. He really was very handsome. "I do believe that it is time..."
Sumi smiled, and floated over to him, latching onto his arm. "Yes...Emma-Chan..." She locked eyes with Emma, but her gaze was still the same as ever. "Minna...you all have a mission to complete...you have to get down to Level Zero and take on Infinity..." Her expression wavered, ever so slightly. "It's...at a critical point, now...but, no matter! Just go from Level 7 down to Level 0 and take out the enemy!" She finished triumphantly.
It probably didn't help.
A few of the Allies had begun to look worried.
Chopper and Usopp looked downright terrified.
Their leader had a different train of thought, however...
"You mean, we have to do all of the Levels in reverse?!" Emma wailed, despite herself. I can't even remember what was before the mountain...what's the first level again?! When's the ocean?!
Law clasped her hand.
"Well, walking's heathy, right?" Ace tried to reassured Emma.
"That's not the issue, Ace-Chan!" Emma complained.
"What Levels?!" Usopp exclaimed.
"Levels six, five, four, three, two, and one, it would seem..." Robin mused. The archeologist looked thoughtful. How interesting...
"Just like the number of levels in Impel Down..." Luffy suddenly realised.
"Aww..." Emma complained.
"We have to go through a bunch of weird places?" Chopper stared up at them all.
Sumi nodded. "Mmhmm! It'll be fun!"
"You sound like Marco-San." Emma groaned.
"Bring it on!" Luffy declared.
Vivi swallowed, but then looked determined.
Emma was currently panicking at Law's side; he sensed it and he knew the reason for it. He said: "Sumi-Ya...the Level Of Water..."
"Yeah..." Sumi held up her hands. "I don't know. Luffy kept his Devil Fruit power, and so did Emma-Chan...and, you guys..." She glanced from Robin to Chopper to Brook to Ace and then back at Law. "That wasn't supposed to happen." She looked around at them all. "Know what this means?"
"That we're anomalies?" Nami guessed.
"I keep telling you, Nami, we don't have tentacles!" Luffy cried.
Sanji smacked him upside the head. "And I keep telling you, that's not what she said!"
"What's wrong with octopda?" Chopper wanted to know.
"Well, if they're Blue-Ringed Octopi, then, a lot..." Sumi smiled.
"Tetrodotoxin." Emma murmured, and she and Vivi exchanged a grin.
"What were we even talking about again?" Sanji wondered.
"Something about amenities?" Franky assumed.
Sumi's grin seemed fixed by this stage. I love these guys...you do too, don't you, Emma-Chan? That's why...you have to see this through until the end...
Sumi held up her hands. "When Emma-Chan took Death's hand...in place of you all...it was not supposed to happen..."
"But, it did." Thatch said calmly. He took ahold of one of Sumi's hands.
You two... Emma thought.
"Right." Sumi grinned. "So...because it's you guys...I know you'll be okay! I'm sure of it! Also...you'll have help along the way but, for now...Life is waiting for you at the gates...Tha-Chan and I will meet you there..." She added, as she and Thatch began to disappear. "Just follow the signs..."
Can...everybody in Heaven do that? Emma wondered, thinking about how Roger and Rouge had done the same thing. Oh my God...I can't believe that I actually got to meet those two!
As if on cue, Ace wrapped his arms around Emma from behind, drawing her close to his chest.
"Looks like we're all here." Ace murmured, breathing in deeply. The scent of the flower in Emma's hair was oddly familiar to him...
"At last." Usopp couldn't help but say. He was still feeling slightly annoyed that Emma had jump-scared him.
"Oh, come on, Usopp," Nami scolded the sniper. "She wasn't that late!" She then turned to Emma and pointed accusingly at her. "You had us really worried, Em!"
"I'm sorry." Emma said contritely. She looked around at all of them, slowly and carefully.
Nami, who was trying to look stern, but the relieved expression in her eyes gave her away. Emma knew that Nami had probably been one of the most worried about her, especially over the past couple of days, and she appreciated the navigator's concern.
Usopp, who was rolling his eyes, but he was also smiling. For all of his complaining, rivalled only by Emma's own at times, she knew that the sniper had her back.
Franky, who was smiling as he called the fact that they were all here together 'super', and looking around as the sunlight was reflecting off of his sunglasses. Emma closed her eyes briefly, thinking that she agreed with him; somehow, it was super.
Sanji, who had been so busy admiring the women in their dresses that he hadn't noticed the danger. Emma realised this, as she opened her eyes to see the reflected sunlight hit the poor chef like a laser beam, knocking him backwards.
Zoro, who commented that Sanji couldn't afford to be blind in one eye. Emma speculated that, even in the Celestial Realm, that those two were never going to get along.
Luffy, who laughed and said that Zoro was one to talk. Emma wondered briefly if he should have said that - it was true, of course, but she was probably the only one who thought that the straw hat wearing Captain looked cute when he had a go at somebody like that.
Vivi, who was smiling as she stood next to Luffy, and watching everything with her calm blue-grey eyes, probably thought so too. Emma thought back to something that she and Ace had agreed on before, and applied it to this situation, too - that Luffy and Vivi looked good together, no matter where or what they were.
Robin, whose eyes were also calm, as she silently wondered if it was ever night-time here. Emma wasn't sure how she knew that was what the Robin was thinking, but it was a fair bet since the archeologist kept looking up at the sky.
Brook, who was currently playing another song on his violin, which Emma recognised; she loved how the skeleton musician had taken the time to learn songs from her world.
Chopper, who was climbing up onto a nearby wooden fence post that they hadn't noticed, to avoid disappearing amidst the golden grass...
"Ne, you guys!" The reindeer-doctor called to them all. Robin, Nami, and Brook glanced over at him. "You guys!" Chopper tried again, a little more loudly, and Zoro and Sanji stopped arguing with Franky about his 'dangerous sunglasses'; the three of them looked over at Chopper, who was standing on the top of the wooden fence now, next to a sign post. "Luffy! Vivi!" Chopper fairly yelled.
Luffy and Vivi jumped slightly and then, realising that most of the others had gathered around Chopper, went over there as well.
Emma, meanwhile, had turned around, and was staring up at Ace, still trying to decide whether or not to tell him that she'd just met his parents.
They kept their distance...and, Roger-Sama even had his hood on, so that anybody looking through a spyglass -coughUSOPPcough- wouldn't be able to recognise his iconic look... Emma glanced away. No...I feel like...I can't tell him. Not yet.
Ace was staring into Emma's hazel eyes until she looked away from him, and now he frowned ever-so-slightly. "Emiko..." He murmured, and she glanced at him briefly before looking away again. "What is it?" His expression turned thoughtful. "There's something that you're not telling me..." He watched as she bit her lip. Yup. "Something...you did? No..." He kept one hand on her scarred shoulder, and put the other one under his chin thoughtfully. "Something you...saw...no, not something, someone!" He declared. "Those two people up on the hill with you before! They were people that...you've wanted to meet, weren't they?"
She grimaced, just slightly, confirming his suspicions. There's a reason that this guy's my soul-mate...he's getting closer to the truth...
"Who were they, Emiko?"
If he figures it out on his own, is that the same as me telling him? Emma wondered, just as a voice made her suddenly glance over at the group that was crowded around the fence where Chopper was standing.
"Seems that the tanuki has found one of the signs that Sumi-Ya mentioned." Law, in his calm voice, appeared to be speaking to all of them but his cool silver-grey eyes zeroed in on Emma.
I can always count on either Ace-Chan or Law-Chan to bring me back down to Earth... Emma thought. Or, back to Level Seven or wherever...seriously, why are we up here instead of being down on Level Zero?!
"Yup, I found it!" Chopper said proudly. "Unfortunately, it's in a different language, but I bet Robin can read it! It looks like those things that she reads!" He added. Then: "I'm a reindeer!"
"Perhaps Nico-Ya can read it..." Law mused, his eyes still trained on Emma. "Since the symbols do resemble the ones on the Poneglyphs, as the tanuki speculated..."
"Aurgh!" Chopper nearly fell off the fence in frustration, as Emma and Ace joined their Allies gathered around the signpost.
"The same writing that's on the Tomodachi No Konpasu..." Ace said thoughtfully.
"What do you mean?" Emma asked Ace, blinking in surprise.
He reached over and turned over the compass that she had around her neck. Correctly interpreting the surprised look on her face when she saw the unfamiliar symbols etched into the back of the device, Ace said: "You mean that you've had it for this long and you never once looked at the back of it or anything?"
"Hey, I would've examined the thing more except that every time I did you lot all transformed into cats!" She reminded him. "And, I did look at the back of it, but I didn't realise that those things were written in the same way as Robin-San's Poneglyph thingies..." Her gaze met the archeologist's. "Can you...?"
Robin nodded. "Hai. It says 'Hikari No Hime'...which is its literal translation, however..."
"However?" Emma, Ace, Nami, Vivi, Sanji, and Usopp said in unison.
"Sometimes," Robin explained, managing to sound very serene as she talked about the thing that had pretty much been her island's downfall and her whole existence (before meeting her Nakama, when she got another reason to live). "The Poneglyphs can have more than one meaning. A lot of languages apply this rule to their system of writing, and the Poneglyphs are no exception. There are sometimes multiple different meanings behind certain characters, and different ways of interpreting the same glyph."
"I see." Luffy nodded seriously.
"Okay then, Luffy, what's a 'glyph'?" Nami asked scathingly.
"Umm..."
Robin merely continued to smile. "So, with the inscription on Emma-San's compass, Hikari No Hime is the literal translation."
"So..." Nami said thoughtfully. "You mean that interpreting it as saying Princess Of Light is the most basic way to read it and the one that makes the most sense?"
Robin nodded again.
"Right, because Emmy is the Princess Of Light, and that's her compass." Luffy said firmly.
"Right." Robin agreed. "The Princess Of Light...however, if one were to read the fourth character with the fifth character and leave the third one separate..." She watched as Luffy's eyes glazed over. "That is to say, it could also be interpreted to read Hikari No Megami."
Everybody just stared at her, not saying anything until Emma said: "I'm sorry, what?" They all looked at her. "What? Why are you all looking like you agree with what's just been said?" She glanced at Robin, who just looked amused. "Not that I'm doubting you." She informed the archeologist. She then must have realised what Robin was going to say next, because she closed her eyes and waited.
"Emma-San...perhaps this is all related to your Mother...to Undine."
"Yohohoho, the Ocean Goddess Undine!" Brook spoke up suddenly.
"Say whaaaaaa-?!" Franky exclaimed, and Emma opened her eyes quickly to see that Franky's sunglasses had fallen down his metal nose, and he was staring at her in complete and utter shock. "Undine-San was the Ocean Goddess?!"
"Why do I get the feeling that Franky knew Emma's Mother from our world...?" Usopp cast a wary glance at the cyborg, who was staring at Emma like he was seeing her in a whole new light.
The others exchanged glances, and waited.
"Umm..." Emma nodded. "Yes, apparently...according to some...visions..." She and Vivi exchanged a quick glance.
Franky was looking shocked, and shaking his head. "I mean...I knew that Emma-Nee-Chan's Mother had to be the same Edward Undine who was friends with my mentor..."
"You mean the Fishman, Tom-San, right?" Emma applied some knowledge of her favourite One Piece arc. I'll look past the fact that he didn't tell me any of this...
"Right." Franky folded his arms. "He and Old Lady Kokoro knew her before I showed up, and I remember that they called her 'Undine-Sama'..."
"Yeah...that's what those guys called her, too..." Emma mused. She was thinking: Now I realise who she meant when she talked about going to see Koko-San and Old Tom...wow, just...wow...
"She means the Fishmen that we saw in those visions." Vivi supplied. "They all called her 'Undine-Sama', as well..." She remembered.
"Yeah, that wouldn't surprise me." Franky nodded thoughtfully. "Tom-San said that it was a 'Fishman thing'...and, Old Lady Kokoro..."
"What'd she say?" Luffy asked, with some interest.
"Well, she said that it was a 'Mermaid thing'..." Franky told them all.
"Why would the old lady have said that?" Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji all asked in unison.
"Seriously..." Nami seethed, trying not to lose her temper. She then sighed. "So...is it a thing that the Merfolk know about..."
"Or, the Fishmen?" Usopp said quietly, realising that Nami probably wasn't feeling exactly thrilled about that part of conversation.
"Por que no los dos?" Ace said suddenly, and they all looked at him, except for Emma, who groaned.
"You were hanging out with Peter at the party, weren't you?" The red-head realised, as her lover grinned.
"How did you manage to get away from Emmy at the party, Ace?" Luffy wanted to know, and this time Nami couldn't stop herself from smacking him upside the head.
"It was probably when Usopp-San got us to pose for that photo on the couch in front of the fountain..." Vivi remembered, and Sanji and Zoro (who had been roped into the photo alongside Vivi, Emma, Nami, and Law) had to agree with her.
Brook took the opportunity to play the theme song from Friends on his violin, as Law walked over to where Emma was.
"Isn't it amazing how far we've strayed from the original topic?" The surgeon mused.
"As long as we're not talking about me being some 'Goddess Of Light', then, it's okay." Emma replied firmly, nodding.
"No!" Chopper had managed to climb back onto the fence. "It's not okay!" They all turned, as he put his cloven hooves on his hips and glared at them all - considering how adorable he was, it probably didn't have the desired effect. At least they were all listening to him now. "Can't you just imagine Sumi and Thatch waiting for us, you guys?!"
They all exchanged glances, just as Sumi herself appeared suddenly behind a startled Chopper, catching him in a big hug which stopped him from falling off of the fence.
"You are so sweet, Chopper-Chan!" She told him, which earned her his standard response. She then let him go, causing him to fall off of the fence, and leaned her elbows on the fence. "Minna, try to stay on task, okay?" She was smiling, though. "I know that's asking a lot...everything's always so interesting with you guys, but you'll have lots more to talk about soon. And," she added, glancing at Emma as she disappeared. "Everything will make more sense once you start out. Okay?"
Emma nodded, and addressed her Allies. "Sumi-Chan's right. As one of my Dads always says, 'the longest journey begins with the first step', or, something like that." Also, Sumi-Chan may not have said it, but, we don't have forever to do this. We have to hurry, or, at least act like we're going to do this quickly. "Robin-San, what does that sign say?" She pointed to the wooden signpost.
"It says that the Holy Gates are in that direction." Robin stared, gesturing in the direction that the signpost was pointing.
"The Holy Gates." Emma repeated, and looked over at Law, who nodded. "Death said that the Holy Gates are the portal between Levels Seven and Six, so, let's go there..."
The others nodded, and set off in the direction that the signpost was pointing.
Sumi-Chan said...that everything will make sense...what does she mean? Does she know more than what she's letting on...?
Author's Notes:
The golden field that makes up Level Seven is based off of Elysium. Although I got more inspiration from the thought of Mag Mel - watch the opening theme for Clannad of the same name to see more inspiration of it.
youtu . be / oHdZOKm5xzo?t=32s
(It also appears at 1:25...)
SONG LIST:
. Angel, by Lo-Tel
. I'll Be There For You, the theme from Friends (mentioned)