A/N: I know I said this at the beginning of the last chapter, but I updated Chapter 3. If you don't read at least the Author's Note at the beginning of that chapter, this can be confusing. As ASN grew and evolved in my mind, some of what I wrote almost a year ago doesn't fit anymore. So I changed it and updated the chapter that those changes affect. I hope you enjoy the updates and this chapter!

His words hurt worse than any wound I have received. If it had been so easy for me to become a pirate again, why would I have continued being a Marine? My chest started aching as I stared at Shanks. He was angry at me, I realized. Angry that I didn't come back. So why did he send me away in the first place? To teach me some lesson about seducing him? My whole body started to shake, and I didn't know whether I wanted to kill him or burst into tears. So then I did the safest thing and shifted into neutral. I carefully packed my emotions into a neat little box and pushed them to the back of my mind.

I felt nothing as I agreed with Shanks. "You're right." I saw surprise light Shanks' face as I added, "I couldn't."

"What do you mean?" he snapped, but the anger was quickly leaching from his voice.

I opened my mouth to answer, but the words caught in my throat when I heard Sora and Eli come onto the deck. As I was turning to look at them, I tried desperately to feel something again. Or to at least look like I did. When I saw the looks on their faces, I knew I failed. Before I could blink, they vanished and I heard a surprised grunt behind me. I turned back around and saw Shanks doubled over in pain. I tried to take a step closer towards him, but I ended up falling flat on my face. I was starting to feel again as I looked down at the ropes tied tightly around me. My arms were tied backwards behind my back and my legs were tied in three spots. Yeah, I was definitely starting to feel angry.

"Boys," I growled, "explain yourselves."

I pushed up with my shoulders and head and managed to roll over onto my side. Sora and Eli were across the deck and digging around in my bag. Completely ignoring me. I ground my teeth together and started to repeat my question. Sora interrupted me as he triumphantly pulled something out of the bag. A Transponder Snail? Why would he want that? The boys placed the Snail down on the deck and dialed a number. There was a look of intense concentration on their faces as they waited for someone to answer. The voice that came through the Snail made all the blood rush away from my face.

"Hello?" Doflamingo's voice sounded mild enough, but I knew him well enough to hear his irritation.

"Boys, what the hell are you do—" I was cut off mid-sentence by both of the boys shouting, "Doffy! You need to fix Mama!"

Doflamingo chuckled as he fondly greeted the twins, "Sora and Eli, it's been awhile." In the background of his call, I heard a few members of the Don Quixote Family also call out greetings. "What's wrong with your mother?"

"We're on a special mission—" Eli started.

Sora added, "With some pirates!"

"And the Old Man Captain made Mama—,"

"Blank out like she did on that island! And during the War!"

I was struggling to right myself as they were talking, but I finally gave up and just started rolling closer to the boys. Doflamingo's chuckle made me stop mid-roll. "Is that so," he said, sounding way too amused. "Are the pirates you're with, perhaps, the Red-Hair Pirates?"

"Yes!" both boys shouted, quickly nodding their heads up and down despite the Warlord not being able to actually see them.

This time, Doflamingo laughed so hard it made me jump and my head slam down onto the deck. When he stopped laughing, he asked, "I assume you have her tied up in some way, if you're calling me?"

I had started rolling over again when Doffy was laughing. I forced myself into a sitting position and snarled into the Snail, "What are you teaching my children?!"

Doffy chuckled again and I could see his smirk mirrored on the Snail. The bastard ignored my question and continued talking to the twins. "Boys, I need you to leave your mother tied up." Doflamingo started speaking over my curses, "And drag the Old Man closer."

I watched the boys scramble to do as he asked, frowning. "How did you know they needed to drag Red-Hair over?" I asked the Snail. My hands were starting to go numb, so I started flexing them as I leaned back against a barrel.

"You don't realize just how much the boys know you, Kitty," Doffy answered quietly. "They're smart, so I figured that they had put the two of you out of commission before calling me."

I let out a small grunt, amazed at how well the Warlord knew my children. Before I could say anything, Sora and Eli dropped Shanks in front of me. He rolled into a sitting position, looking a little green around the gills as he protectively placed his hand in his lap. Shanks' dark gaze tried to meet mine, but I turned to glare at my children. Doflamingo praised them before asking the twins to go help with dinner. Sora and Eli grumbled, but they were sharp enough to know that when Doffy asked something, it was always a demand. I let out a small hum when the children were out of earshot and the mirrored smile instantly fell off of the Transponder Snail's face.

"Elle," Doffy's deep voice drew out my name, "tell me what happened."

My chest started to hurt as the tape ripped off of my emotion-box. I quickly held it closed as I whispered, "He said I could've come back any time I wanted." I bit my lip and pulled my bound knees up to my chest. Even quieter, I added, "And he implied that I stayed because I wanted to."

I heard a weird surging sound and felt a shiver roll down my spine. Doflamingo's forehead vein always gave me the heeby-jeebies. Shanks frowned as he gave me a hard stare. "Kitty," Doffy said slowly. "You realize that there is no possible way he could know the truth, right?"

"I know!" I said sharply, my voice cracking. I pressed my forehead against my knees and repeated, quieter, "I know. But it's the same as the War. I know he couldn't have known better, but I just feel this...this—hatred—bubbling up inside of me and I don't know how to stop it."

"What are you talking about?" Shanks asked softly, his dark gaze jumping between the Snail and I.

Doflamingo let out a small snort of a laugh before he answered the Emperor's question with a question. "Didn't you ever wonder why Elle became a Marine instead of going right back to you?" Doflamingo didn't wait for Shanks to answer, the Snail's smirk growing with his. "You know that the Sea Prism Stone handcuffs that they put her in had no affect on Elle. She could have escaped any time."

My heart was starting to race, but I just pressed my lips together when Shanks shot me a puzzled glance. "I figured Garp kept too close of an eye on her," he said after a long moment. "Or that her sea-sickness was too much for her to handle. It was really bad when she left."

Doflamingo and I both snorted at the last sentence and Shanks glared at the Snail. "It wasn't sea-sickness," Doffy said crisply, "but morning-sickness. And the reason for her morning-sickness is the reason why Elle became a Marine."

"The ultimatum," Shanks whispered, referring to my orders.

"If I did anything to betray the Marines, even insubordination, could get my children taken away from me," I answered, holding Shanks' gaze until he looked away. "If I tried to get in contact with you, or if you learned about my children, they would be put to death. If they learned about who their father was, they would be put to death. If I tried to run away or become a pirate, they would be put to death. So, yes, Shanks, I did not get in touch with you at all during the past ten years." I clenched my jaw and turned away from him.

Shanks let out a small sigh and started to say my name. Doflamingo interrupted him. "Elle is not the girl you sent away, Red-Hair," he said, surprisingly serious. "She is a Marine officer with a fearful reputation of little to no mercy. But everyone who has met the Benineko know that the one thing that she takes seriously is the safety of her children." Doffy let out a small chuckle. "Hell, I was her close friend for several years before she even allowed her children to be on the same island as me."

Shanks' glare hardened. "Where are you going with this, Doflamingo?" he asked slowly, his voice cold.

The surging sounded again, making my cheek and ears twitch. "The girl you knew was reckless with little regard for anyone's life besides yours," Doflamingo said, sounding irritated. "The woman sitting there would gladly tear you to shreds if she didn't need you."

Shanks' head whipped my way and I found myself holding his dark gaze. I heard the soft murmurs of his crew as they walked closer. Ben said my name softly, but I didn't look away from Shanks. What Doflamingo had said was true. "As much as she loves you," Doffy spoke my thoughts aloud, "she resents you. It would be one thing if you two had reunited before the War."

"What do you mean?" Yassop snapped, looking pissed as he stepped up to the Transponder Snail. "How could her opinion have changed that much in just one month?!"

Doflamingo and I both let out laughs. His was mirthful, but mine was nothing but bitter. "My opinion of Red-Hair Shanks changed in just a few moments," I snapped, turning my snarl on Yassop. "Five minutes. If you had been there five minutes sooner I would still have both of my little brothers!"

As one, every member of the Red-Hair pirates froze and said, "Brothers?"

"Yes, brothers!" I felt tears well in my eyes. "I watched those boys grow up! I already hate myself for not having the power to stop Ace's execution. But you!" I turned my snarl on Shanks, aware that my tears had overflowed and were running down my cheeks. "You were able to stop the whole damn War with just a few words! If you had been there five minutes sooner, Ace would still be alive!"

Still snarling, I turned away from Shanks again. I wiped my face against my shoulder and tasted blood in my mouth and a wetness on my hands. I was biting my lip and my claws had pierced the skin of my palms. I took in a deep, shuddering breath and relaxed on the exhale. I heard someone—Ben, I think—ask if I considered Ace my brother because I thought of Gold Roger as my father. I let out a small, acerbic laugh and turned to smirk up at Ben. I cut the ropes binding my wrists with my claws before I answered.

"Ace was an annoying little shit and the only thing that even remotely resembled my Captain was his inability to turn away from a fight." I paused and cut off the rest of the ropes on my arms before I continued. "And I tried to kill Luffy the first time we met. But those boys grew on me. Hell, they named my children. I helped raise them, watched them learn and grow. Ace learned how to relish being alive, and Luffy grew strong enough to protect his friends."

I wiped my face with my freed hands and let out a laugh that was more of a sob. "I had to stand back and watch my brothers die," I shouted, my voice breaking on the last word. "Why couldn't you have come sooner?! Why did they have to suffer so much just because they were born?!"

Shanks stared at Elle, his chest aching. She didn't hate him, Shanks realized as he watched her blood-stained tears roll out from under her hands. Elle hated herself, hated the fact that she had been powerless to stop Akainu from killing Ace. Shanks jumped slightly when Elle pulled her hands away from her face with a snarl. Her pupils had narrowed almost completely, making her eyes appear all the more yellow. She was still crying and Shanks could see her hands shake as she viciously started tearing at the ropes binding her legs. His heart started to race when he saw the pale gray stripes appear on her arms and face.

Shanks placed his hand on his sword, preparing to draw it when the Transponder Snail suddenly spoke. "Elle, calm down." Elle snarled at the Snail, causing the smirk to fall from its face. The Warlord speaking through it added, "You need to regain your control, Elle. Or do you want me to come help you?"

Every inch of Elle froze and she looked at the smiling Snail. "No, you don't need to come, Doflamingo," she said quietly her voice rough from her crying. To his amazement, Shanks watched as the stripes slowly faded from her skin. "I'm fine now."

The Warlord let out an annoying chuckle. "Good. Now, go eat with your children." Elle nodded at the Snail and stood up. She took two steps, stepping out of the pile of ropes, before she paused and asked the Warlord if she should hang up. "No," he answered her, the Snail's eyes turning to look at Shanks. "I have a few words to say to Red-Hair."

Elle frowned down at the Snail for a long moment before she let out a small grunt. She told him not to say anything unnecessary before she walked off the deck. When she was out of sight, Shanks said, "you two seem close."

The Warlord barked out a laugh. "I am probably the one who knows her best." Shanks fought to keep an easy, relaxed expression on the face, but this cocky Warlord was starting to piss him off. "But you knew her fairly well," the Warlord continued, "so I assume you know why her Devil Fruit is such a nuisance to her."

"I will say, I am impressed you were able to talk her back from that ledge," Shanks said with a small chuckle. "I'm not ashamed to admit that I was genuinely worried for a moment there."

"As well you should have been. Kitty isn't exactly pleased with you at the moment." Oh, this Warlord was a dick. "But I digress, you know that Elle can lose control of her animal-side. What you don't know is how to control it."

As far as Shanks knew, the only way for Elle to regain control once she lost herself was for her to be rendered unconscious. But this Warlord was talking like there was a better way. "I take it you are going to enlighten me?" Shanks asked as he took a seat closer to the Snail.

The Warlord let out a laugh and Shanks had to grind his teeth together to keep from snapping. "It's only fair that I tell you, Red-Hair, as you're the one who technically discovered it." The Warlord paused and only resumed speaking when Shanks asked what he meant. "When you gave her over to Garp, Elle was strangely subdued, yes? Well, that is because you gave her the treatment."

Shanks couldn't stop the scowl that tugged at his brows. "Stop beating around the bush and just tell me," he snapped.

"Adrenaline. If Elle is able to get rid of any excess energy and adrenaline, she is able to successfully keep control as she shifts into her full hybrid-form." The smirk on the Snail's face grew even wider, if that was possible. "There are three ways we've discovered that it works: childbirth, fighting, and sex."

That shocked Shanks. "What?"

The Snail laughed, sounding way too amused for Shanks' taste. "Elle told me that childbirth had helped her the most, as she didn't lose control for over a year after she delivered the twins," the Warlord told him. "She also discovered that if she was able to fight totally unrestrained she would keep control. That is partially where she gained her reputation."

It did make sense, Shanks couldn't help but think. After a battle, Elle had always seemed more relaxed than at any other time. Well—almost. Thinking back, Shanks remembered one other time where Elle had appeared totally and entirely in control and relaxed. And he didn't like where this conversation was going, even as he quietly asked, "And sex?"

The Snail was full-on grinning at Shanks as the sound of rustling fabric could be heard over the line. "Now we're getting there!" the Warlord said excitedly. "Now this is one of our more recent findings, as we only put two and two together about three years ago. You remember the night you met Fire-Fist Ace?"

"What does that have to do with this?" Shanks snapped, his irritation almost bubbling over.

"Just answer my question, Red-Hair." The smile never left the Snail's face.

"Yes."

And he did. It had been on a winter island three years ago. Shanks remembered that they had been partying for some reason or another when a rookie pirate appeared in front of them. He had shocked Shanks by sincerely thanking Shanks for saving his baby brother. They had laughed and talked about Luffy as the Spade Pirates joined in the party.

Later that night, when they had been well and truly trashed, Ace had told Shanks that he was a much nicer dude than his big sister had told him. Confused, Shanks had tried to ask Ace more, but the kid had just gone on and on about how Shanks had supposedly broken this girl's heart by leaving her behind. He joked that Shanks was the only thing that his siblings had disagreed on. Then Ace said that he had even ran into his sister and her kids on that island earlier that day.

By then, the two pirate crews had relocated their party to a local bar, as they had run out of booze. Hearing that this mysterious sister had been on the island, Shanks wanted to go see her. A couple of very cute barmaids had distracted him, however. Shanks' attention was pulled from one of them when Ace had abruptly called out a greeting to his sister. Wanting to see this girl, Shanks had stood up, dropping the barmaid on his lap onto the ground. When Shanks had turned back to the door, he saw a wide-eyed Ben quickly hide someone behind his back.

When they had relocated, Shanks had asked Ben, Yassop, and Lucky to go gather some supplies. They must have ran into this mysterious sister of Ace's and caught up with her. But Shanks hadn't had the time to dwell on this as a loud snarl echoed throughout the room. Ben had cursed and shoved someone outside into the snow. Lucky turned around and had started talking to someone little behind him. Yassop had run out into the snow behind Ben and the sounds of a vicious animal fighting could be heard.

Ace had cursed and ran outside, leaving a stunned Shanks standing alone at the bar. The sound of flames joined into the cacophony outside. Lucky had shouted something about a Transponder Snail as Shanks sat down to finish his drink. It seemed like his crew had everything under control, so he hadn't been worried. Several minutes later, the sound of fighting stopped, but the snarls and growls continued. Ace and Yassop had walked back into the bar, both looking extremely beat up. Before he could ask what had happened, a snarled shout reverberated deep into his core.

"SHANKS!"

The voice had sounded familiar and Shanks had pondered it over another drink. When that had finished, there was another loud snarl outside before the noise abruptly stopped. The doors to the bar burst open and a blond man walked inside, all bull-legged. The only thing that really struck Shanks about the man (other than his walk) was his big, pink feathered coat and the sunglasses covering his eyes. The man had slowly taken in the room before he looked at Shanks. He had asked if Shanks had seen the woman who had made the fuss today. Or any children. When Shanks had answered a negative to both questions, the man had given him a small nod before sauntering out of the room.

It had been an odd experience, but Shanks hadn't thought much about it. That is, until he saw the smirk of that man mirrored on the Transponder Snail in front of him.

"Well, Elle had lost all semblance of control that day," the Warlord said, bringing Shanks out of his memories. "I had Hawkeye take the twins and I brought her home. I let her come at me with all she had, and it still hadn't been enough to calm her. That night, I had discovered what did. You see, we—,"

"That is enough," Shanks snapped, standing up. "I get what you're trying to say."

The Warlord chuckled. Again. "Good. Elle is in a very emotional place right now, Red-Hair," the man said, a shrug in his voice. "If you want to survive this mission of hers, you have three options. You can fight her or fuck her. Or you could call me and I'll take care of her."

"Thanks," Shanks ground out, trying to come across as aloof. "But I don't think we'll be taking you up on that offer."

The Warlord laughed. "If you change your mind, the twins know how to get a hold of me. Until then, Red-Hair—buuuuuurrrrrrr...ca-lick." Shanks hung up the Transponder Snail and had to restrain himself from throwing the damn thing into the ocean.

He was distracted by Cook running onto the deck. The man was pale as a ghost and shouting something about bottomless pits. It took several minutes for them to get the man calmed down, thankfully deflecting Shanks from the conversation he had just had. Once Cook had calmed enough to speak, he told Shanks that the food he had prepared for the crew's dinner wasn't enough for them all to eat. He said that the twins and Elle were eating it all. Everyone laughed, the thought of a woman and two boys eating enough food for over twenty men ridiculous.

Just then, the door to the Galley opened again, highlighting Elle. She shoved a bite of something into her mouth and chewed it. Her cheeks had a rosy glow and her eyes were drooping. Shanks recognized the look as that of when she had eaten her full. Elle finished chewing and wiped her mouth off on the back of her hand. She rubbed her stomach as she walked onto the deck.

"Yeah, we need more food," she said nonchalantly. "The boys just polished off the last of dinner."

"SERIOUSLY?" every member of the Red-Hair pirates shouted, their eyes popping out of their skulls. "YOU GUYS ATE IT ALL?!"

Elle shrugged. "It wasn't that much in the first place."

A/N: Writing this chapter literally made me cry. But, then again, I sobbed like a baby during the events of the War of the Best. I hope that I was able to convey at least some of what Elle was feeling. If I did, please let me know! If you think I could do better, also let me know! If you just want to say that you loved or hated it, tell me! I love reading the reviews, so please keep 'em coming!

My lovelies~
Shini