"Okay, boys, you or me?" My sons glanced at me when I talked, but neither one of them stopped drinking. They just pointed at me, so I nodded and asked, "Blindfolded?"
In perfect sync, the boys drained their cups, brushed their hand across their mouths, and exhaled before they said, "The catch?"
I took a drink from my own cup before I said, "No Devil Fruits." I chuckled softly when the twins scowled at me and added, "You can use weapons, though. That okay?"
Sora and Eli both grinned at me before they ran off to get their weapons. I smiled after them before I pulled myself to my feet. After Shanks had asked about Coby and Helmeppo, he had gone strangely quiet. So I decided to ignore him and tried to ask about the blindfold, but Ben had interrupted me. The Vice-Captain had said that we needed to stop to hydrate and catch our breath before he would let us continue our training. I had snarled at him, but the twins had still been flushed, so I relented. I was sincerely regretting that decision as my muscles were screaming at me because of the inactivity.
I smacked my thighs twice before I walked over to my bag. I opened the white flap and started digging around in it. I finally found an old red sash and pulled it out of the bag. I held it up to the sun and couldn't see through it, so I deemed it an acceptable blindfold. I noticed the twins come back on the deck, so I shut the bag and leaned it against the mast. I waited until the twins were in front of me before I tied the sash around my head. I waited a moment for Sora and Eli to do whatever it is they did to test to see if I could see them. When they were finally satisfied that I couldn't see them, Sora told me and I stood up. One of the boys—Eli, I'm sure—grabbed my hand and led me out to the open area of the deck.
I took a deep breath and rolled my shoulders before I widened my stance. I heard one of the men ask what we were doing, but I ignored him. I could feel the twins as they circled around me. In the span of a heartbeat, I felt Sora launch himself at me. I pivoted my hip, smoothly dodging, and smiled as I felt Sora fly by. I leaned down, kicking my right leg up behind me, and felt Eli soar over my back. I twisted my left leg and kicked Sora into his brother. I put my leg back down and smirked in the direction of the twins.
"You two are gonna hafta try harder than that!" I taunted, using my tail to wave at them.
I heard the twins both growl before they launched a joint attack. Instead of dodging, this time I crossed my arms and blocked their kicks. I grinned at them before I pushed my arms out, sending them flying away from me. It sounded like they landed pretty hard, so I let my guard down for a moment. But a moment was all Sora needed to throw his weapon at me. I tilted my head to the side at the last moment, but the weapon left a small scratch on the bridge of my nose. I raised my eyebrows and turned in Sora's direction. I started to praise him, but two things happened that made my words die in my throat.
I suddenly felt Eli drop down on top of me, heard the sound of his kunai whistling through the air. He must have used his brother as a distraction while he climbed up the rigging to—literally—get the drop on me. Later I would feel pride that they were able to surprise me. But at that moment, I was busy. I brushed Eli's arm away from me, twisting my hand so that I had a hold on his kunai. In the same moment, I grabbed the back of Eli's shirt and pulled him behind me. I spun the kunai around so that I was holding its handle, being careful not to drop it with my blood-slick hand. Before Eli's feet touched the ground, I threw the knife and heard it embed itself into the mast.
Along with a male scream of terror.
Shanks wasn't sure what to think when he saw Elle pull a (strangely familiar) red sash out of her bag and hold it up to the light. She appeared satisfied with it as she nodded and closed her bag. The twins approached her and she smiled at them before tying the sash over her eyes. Why was she blindfolding herself? And why were the twins making such ridiculous faces? Where did those chopsticks come fro—THAT IS NOT HOW YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO USE CHOPSTICKS! WHY WOULD YOU PUT THEM UP YOUR NOSE AND INSIDE YOUR LIP? IT LOOKS LIKE IT SHOULD HURT.
The rest of his crew seemed just as stunned by the twins' actions, too shocked to even laugh at the funny sight. Before any of the men could recover, the twins removed the chopsticks and grinned at each other. Eli grabbed his mother's hand and led her out into the middle of the deck before moving several feet away from her. It seems that the twins weren't the only ones who could sync up as all three of them moved into identical fighting stances at the exact same time. Ben asked what they were doing, but Elle's ears pivoting towards him was the only clue that someone had heard him.
What happened next could only be described as beautiful. The boys started fighting their mother, their brows drawn together in identical looks of pure concentration. And no matter what they did, Elle was able to easily dodge or block them. She was obviously having fun, her grin only widening when she taunted her children. The smooth way that all three of them moving was more than enough proof that this was something that they did often. Shanks could tell that Elle wasn't taking the fight seriously, that she was just using this as an exercise for her children to gain real fighting experience. But that didn't mean she couldn't get hurt.
Shank took an involuntary step forwards when Sora threw his dagger, but let out a sigh of relief when Elle avoided it. But not fast enough, Shanks thought when he saw a thin line of blood appear on the bridge of her nose. He opened his mouth to call the whole thing off, but felt the words die in his throat when he saw the look of pure pride on her face. Elle unerringly turned her face towards Sora and started to praise him. But she was cut off by a small red blur that dropped onto her from the rigging above.
Shanks saw the smile fall from her face first, leaving a blank slate. She grabbed Eli's kunai knife and the boy at the same time, and Shanks saw blood drip out of her clenched hand. Then Elle spun her son behind her and safely place him on the deck. Simultaneously, she maneuvered the blade so that she was holding it correctly and threw it before Eli's feet touched wood. The kunai flew through the air and landed deep in the mast...
Right above Rockstar's head.
The man dropped Elle's bag with a scream and fell back. Shanks started to get a bad feeling and nervously glanced at Elle. She wasn't frowning, exactly, but her lips were pursed. Her ears lay flat against her head and Shanks saw her tail angrily swishing. Shanks felt his anxiety increase when he saw light gray stripes appear all over Elle's body, almost like a tiger's. Elle reached up and pulled the sash free, leaving a smear of crimson on her white hair. Any lack of emotion on Elle's face was made up for by tenfold in her eyes. Her golden cat-eyes were furious and glacial as she looked at Rockstar.
"Listen here, newbie," she softly said, her voice slightly deeper than normal. Speaking, Shanks could see that her fangs had lengthened, and glancing down at her hands revealed that her claws had as well. "I'm willing to cut ya a little bit of slack, seeings how you obviously have no idea who I am—"
"I know who you are," Rockstar interrupted, standing up to his full height. "You're the Benineko, one of the most notorious Marines on the Grand Line. You are known for your lack of mercy for anyone. I know that you have never let a pirate slip through your grasp once you've set your sights on them. And I know I will not let you betray my captain."
Oh, no, Rockstar, this was not the time to assert your loyalty. Shanks closed his eyes and winced. Even as he nonchalantly placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, Shanks didn't dare step between Elle and his man. At least, not until he knew that she was going to try and kill Rockstar. There were a few new members of the Red Hair Pirates, men who weren't around at the same time as Elle. It didn't surprise Shanks that Elle knew Rockstar was the newest any more than it was Rockstar who finally challenged Elle's right to be on Shanks' ship.
Shanks opened his eyes again just in time to see the small smirk curl Elle's lips. It was nothing like what she had shown her children just moments before. This smile was little more than a small curve of her lips, but it screamed the malevolence that was starting to pour off of Elle. She coyly tilted her head to the side and took a step closer to Rockstar. The man paled slightly, but stood his ground. The tip of Elle's tongue appeared and licked the point of one of her fangs. She truly looked like the cat who had finally cornered the mouse.
"You know who the Benineko is and yet you still stand before me like that?" Elle let out a laugh that made all of the hair on Shanks' body stand at attention. "You're right," she purred, her smile growing slightly. "I don't show mercy. And yet you're still alive. If I was going to betray Red-Haired Shanks, why would I bother to avoid killing you when you touched my belongings."
"Avoid?" Rockstar laughed, but Shanks could see him start to sweat. "You missed me because you were blindfolded."
Elle giggled and looked over at Yassop. "What do you think, Yacchin? Did I miss?" she asked sweetly.
Shanks' sniper paled and took a step back, but he knew that it was best to not get on Elle's bad side when she was like this. "You never miss, Kitty-Cat," he murmured, shooting a worried glance at Shanks. Shanks took the cowardly rout and quickly looked away from his Sniper.
"You see, newbie?" She turned back to Rockstar, who opened her mouth to interrupt her again. All traces of amusement fell from Elle's face and she snarled, "Shut up. I am going to say this one time and , if you ignore me, I will not hesitate to tear you apart." Rockstar paled and Shanks knew he was thinking about what Elle did at Marineford. Elle's smirk returned and Shanks' shoulders relaxed slightly. "Good boy. Now, no one is to touch my belongings unless I give them explicit permission."
Elle slowly closed the distance between her and Rockstar and grinned up at him with her arms clasped behind her back. "Also know that no matter how much I hate Shanks, I still respect him. I would never betray Shanks because I owe him more than you could ever know. So," she said, her voice honey-sweet. "Listen to Sempai, yeah? And stay the fuck away from me."
Faster than Shanks could blink, Elle punched Rockstar in the face and knocked the man out cold. She sniffed at his body before she grabbed her bag and carefully examined it. No one on the ship dared to move, dared to do more than breathe, until Elle's body decompressed. As the stripes slowly faded from her body, Shanks cautiously approached her. He crouched down next to her and slowly reached out. He softly rubbed her ears the way that had always made her melt and was relieved when she didn't push him away.
Shanks knew that Elle did not like getting so upset about something so trivial. But he also knew why something so simple upsets her as much as it does. Before the Roger Pirates had taken her in, before the Pirate King had adopted Elle, her life had been rough. Worse than rough, if the little she had told him over the years were any indication. The girl had had nothing to call her own. Hell, she didn't even have a name when they found her. When she had been little, Elle had gone into a hissy fit (literally) any time someone touched something that was hers. It wasn't until she was older that Elle had explained that she was always terrified that everything she had gained would be taken away from her at any moment. More than twenty years had passed since that fateful day, and it seemed that Elle was still afraid that she would go back.
It probably didn't help matters that they were going after the man who had given her that fear.
His name was Brutus and he had been one of the top scientists on Punk Hazard, working directly under Vega Punk. But Brutus had no sense of morality and his experiments had been so unethical that even Caesar Clown had found them abhorrent. And Caesar went on to basically blow up the island, so you can imagine just how twisted Brutus' experiments were. Shanks didn't know the details of all of them, but he did know that Brutus had been trying to find a way to counter-act the side effects of eating a Devil Fruit.
He had gathered several Devil Fruits and then fed them to children. He had then done countless experiments on the children to try and give them the ability to swim and an immunity to Sea Prism Stone. Elle was one of those children. She had never gone into much detail about what had been done to her, but Shanks knew it had been hell. When they had found her, the skin around her neck, wrists, ankles, and waist had been rubbed raw. There were needle marks all over her body, along with cuts and finger-shaped bruises. Her fingernails bleed constantly for the first six months they had her and she went feral if in an enclosed space.
When Elle had been twelve or so, she finally felt safe enough to tell Shanks some of what she went through. She had been poked and prodded and cut for as long as she could remember. They had cut open her fingers and toes and had her nails removed. She wasn't sure how, but they had replaced her nails with Sea Prism Stone. She had been sick for weeks and her body had tried to reject the stone. Elle had been unable to move much due to the weakening affects of the stone, so they had eventually stopped chaining her up.
One day, Elle realized that she could move. Slowly, she worked until she could move and shift without immediately passing out, but only when all of the scientists were gone. Elle had patiently waited through more and more torturous experiments until one careless scientist had left an opening for her to escape. Elle's toes had ultimately rejected the Sea Prism Stone, but her body had fused to the ones in her fingers. Something Brutus had done to her made it possible for her body to feed the stones, somehow making them grow like normal nails. Elle had told Shanks that out of at least four Zoan-type Devil Fruit users, she had been the only one to survive the implantation.
Brutus had called her his most successful experiment and had spent years searching for her. That was why Captain Roger had adopted her and taken Elle with him when the crew had disbanded. A few days after Shanks had found Elle in Logue Town, Elle had told him how Roger insisted she call him 'Papa' and how his lover had insisted she be called 'Mama'. Elle had watched her father die before her eyes and heard about the search for her mother and unborn brother. Shanks hadn't known what to do with the young girl who had seen so much in less than a decade of life.
Ultimately, Shanks had just kept her close and tried to smother her with as much affection as possible, trying to make up for the family she had come so close to having. Shanks wasn't sure if he had done the right thing, especially after he had had sex with her and then sent her away because he was so ashamed of himself. Seeing Elle relax and push her head into his hand, Shanks started to feel the embers of their close bond start to flare. His heart twisted in his chest and a realization hit Shanks like a sea king. What had originally been nothing more than a brotherly love had morphed into that of a lover without him noticing it. That night ten years ago, Shanks' body had loved Elle the way his heart and mind hadn't dared acknowledge.
Right then, Shanks made a decision. Elle might not love him like she used to, but he had made her fall in love with him once, so he could do it again. He leaned over and lightly kissed her temple. Elle turned her head and looked at Shanks. Before she could say anything, Shanks leaned down and gave her a small, chaste kiss. He pulled back slightly and met her wide eyes. Then he leaned down and gave her another kiss. It was no more than a brushing of their lips, but there was nothing chaste about it. When Shanks pulled back again, Elle's cheeks were slightly pink.
Elle appeared unable to hold his stare any longer and looked down at her injured hand. She licked the cuts a couple times and nodded at her hand when the wounds clotted. "That guy," she said quietly. "He seems loyal."
Shanks let out a small chuckle. "Yeah, Rockstar is quiet loyal," he murmured. Movement out of the corner of his eye caught Shanks' attention and he looked over to see the man in question slowly sit up. Shanks shot him a small wink before looking down to see Elle closely studying Rockstar.
"I like him. So keep him around, will ya?"
Elle growled at Shanks as he started laughing, pressing his mouth against her head. Rockstar gave his Captain a crazy look and asked what she meant by that. Elle had literally just told him to stay the fuck away from her, then turned around and said she liked him. Rockstar's words only made Shanks laugh harder. Elle snarled at him and elbowed his side, but was distracted by Ben before she could do any more. Rockstar was starting to look concerned, so Shanks fought to straighten up. Elle stood up and scoffed at Shanks before she went to see what Ben needed. Shanks walked her walk away, appreciating the lovely view, before he gave Rockstar a smile.
"Elle has made it clear that she doesn't like you personally," Shanks explained, "But her last statement was approval."
"What do you mean, Captain?"
"That you're one lucky sonofabitch," Yassop said with a small grin. He held out his hand and pulled Shanks to his feet before he added, "Despite royally pissing her off, Elle approves of Captain's decision to make you a member of the crew."
Rockstar slowly got to his feet and asked, "What does it matter if she approves or not? She's a Marine."
Shanks decided to let Yassop answer, instead choosing to go find his Vice-Captain and Kitten. As he walked away, Shanks heard Yassop say, "Elle's a Marine now, but she was also the first member of the Red-Hair Pirates. Despite her young age, Elle's technically all our Sempai."
Shanks was almost out of earshot when he heard Lucky Roo add, "Elle mentioned that she would never betray the Captain because of her respect for him. Well, Captain would kick you off the ship in a heartbeat if she asked. Because that is how much he trusts her instincts."
I walked away from the laughing pirate and fought desperately to keep from reaching up and touching my ear. Shanks always knew how to comfort me, even after spending a decade apart. And it pissed me off, especially when I felt butterflies start to stir in my stomach when he touched me. Shanks had not only irritated me last night with his petty jealousy, but had also wounded me. He vehemently voiced his regret for having sex with me and then gone all possessive male at the first sight that I had been intimate with another man. It was confusing and my heart didn't know what to think. Or feel.
I blew air out of my nose and pulled my hair free as I reached Ben. I finger-combed my hair as Ben explained the issue the navigator had just come across. It had to do with the island my sources had told me my prey was on. Apparently, it was in a section of the New World that was under Emperor Kaido's control. The island itself wasn't technically under Kaido's flag, but it was the only one in the area that wasn't. The island enjoyed the protection that the Emperor provided while still remaining largely free. This was important, as it was a resort island. By not officially being under Kaido's control, any pirate could visit there without angering Kaido, while still largely being safe from the Marines.
The perfect place for someone on the run from the Marines, like my prey. But I didn't understand why Ben and the navigator were having such reservations about going there. When I asked them about it, both men gave me dumbfounded looks and were silent for several minutes. When I didn't say any more, the navigator frowned at me and said, "We're not normal pirates."
I just raised an eyebrow and Ben sighed. "Unlike normal pirates," he explained, "If we land on that island, it could be taken as an act of war. Particularly since we just battled Kaido."
Oh. Well, I guess that makes sense. "I can fix that. Do you guys have a long-distance Transponder Snail?" I asked.
Ben mutely pointed at the Snail on the desk. I walked by him to the Snail, glancing up when the door opened and Shanks walked in. As I dialed the number, the three men had a murmured conversation. I didn't bother listening, as I'm sure Ben and the navigator were just updating their captain. I hopped up on the desk and curled my legs under me as the Snail rang. Finally, a deep, rough male voice answered.
"Hey, Kaido-kun," I said cheerfully. I grinned at the men in the room when they all gave me wide-eyed looks. "I have a favor to ask."
"And who is this?" the Emperor growled.
"Aw, you don't recognize my voice?" I pouted.
The Snail snorted. "Oh, you sound like Ellie," he grunted. "But this is Red-Hair's Snail, so you can't be her."
My eyebrows raised. "Impressive, Kaido-kun." I felt my grin gain a cynical edge. "But, unfortunately, it is me. Due to some unforeseen circumstances, I have been forced to join forces with Red-Hair."
The Snail was silent for a long moment before Kaido chuckled. "Yeah, sure you are," he said gruffly. "Like hell Sengoku would let Ellie work with Red-Hair."
"He would when he is desperately trying to keep me as a Marine," I murmured, the smile dropping from my face. "Especially now that he knows I have ways to break my contract without harming my children."
Another long silence, then, "What d'you need, little kitty?" I explained the issue the navigator had found and the Snail mirrored Kaido's grin. "I see. Because it's you, I'll let Red-Hair on that island. But only him." Kaido went on to say that the rest of the Red-Hair Pirates could wait on a nearby island that was just outside of his territory. "Is that all you need, Ellie?"
"Yes, thank you!" I grinned at the Snail and added, "Does this make us even, now?" Kaido just laughed and hung up the Transponder Snail. I followed suit before glancing up at the men in the room with me. "There. Problem solved."
The navigator started asking me how I got to be so chummy with Kaido, and Shanks and Ben looked equally interested in my answer. When I explained that there was a reason Kaido was called the King of the Beasts. Being a cute little Zoan-Type Devil Fruit user, I had an advantage over normal people when it came to Kaido. If you throw in the fact that I had unlimited stories about four reckless, but strong, boys, and you had the perfect recipe for curing boredom. When Kaido had found out how much time I was spending on the Moby Dick, his interest was piqued. Then he had found out that I had two children who were the spitting image of Red-Hair Shanks. He had sent me a 'request' to meet and, long story short, we became fast friends.
I explained this to Shanks, Ben, and the Navigator and they all continued to stare at me. Finally, Ben asked, "You were friends with Whitebeard?"
"Well, yeah. My little brother was one of his Division Commanders." I rolled my eyes and added, "We had drinks about once a month, not that it's any of your business."
All three men started to rub their temples and Shanks muttered, "Next you'll tell us Big Mom's your best friend."
"No, Mama kinda creeps me out," I shrugged. "But she does have an excellent taste in sweets." I blinked at the men, the hair on the back of my neck standing on end under their intense scrutiny. "What? Just 'cause I couldn't see you guys doesn't mean I couldn't see other pirates."
Shanks just shook his head and brushed the hair out of my face. "Just give us old men a moment to process just how wide your circle of friends are, 'kay, Kitten?" he asked, pressing his lips against my temple.
"Fine," I muttered, desperately trying to keep my cheeks from heating. "But only if you remember that you just called yourself an old man."
A/N: And here's chapter 11! I'm kind of worried that I made Kaido seem a little OC, but I'd like to think that he has a soft spot for Elle because she helps him with his boredom. So try to keep an open mind! It's not a big deal, as I don't think Kaido is going to show up much more, if at all. Aaaannnyyywho, I am bringing in a surprise addition either in the next chapter or the one right after! He's a very special man who is only going to appear so that he can help progress Elle and Shanks' relationship. But I like him, even if hes's an ass. HINT!
I hope you enjoyed the newest chapter, my lovelies!
~Shini