Whole Cake Island
Part Six
"Hey, Chopper, you there?" Nami asked.
"What do you have there, Nami?" Neo leaned over to the navigator.
"A piece of the broken mirror. I'm trying to get a hold of Chopper and Carrot."
"I'm here." Chopper appeared in the mirror piece.
"You okay?" Neo eyed his damp fur.
"We're being chased." Chopper panted. "We've lost them for the moment."
"We're heading towards the castle right now," Nami said. "We'll have to meet up soon."
"No worries, Nami," Chopper said. "If all goes well we should be able to-Ah!"
"Chopper, exactly what part of this is going well for you guys? How are you holding up?" Nami said.
Neo touched the mirror, wishing there was a way she could get in there and help their friends.
"Either way, it looks like there's nothing you guys can do from the outside to help us escape. So, for now, please just-Ah!" Chopper said.
"Nami, don't you worry! We are totally fi-Ah!" Carrot screamed.
"You two aren't convincing me in the slightest!" Nami snapped.
"I'm not convinced either," Neo said. "Should we help you two escape before we go get Sanji? That woman might still be around here somewhere."
"We'll be fine." Chopper looked over his shoulder. "Go for Sanji. If you manage to take him back, let us know. Just speak into this mir-Ah!"
The mirror shattered into smaller pieces.
"That can't be good," Neo said.
"It shattered!" Nami said. "You still there, Chopper? Carrot?! It's turned back to a normal mirror. I hope they really are okay." She looked to Luffy. "Whoa! He keeps shrinking!"
Neo glanced at Luffy. He was almost back to his normal size. "Hope he gets back to normal before we have to fight again."
"Straw Hat said he would in the forest," Law said. "Don't you people ever listen?"
"Of course we do!" Nami snarled. "I've got a lot on my mind! If you hadn't noticed two of our friends are in trouble!"
"At least they're not in life threatening trouble." Neo pulled her knees to her chest.
"That's right. You'd sense it if they were." Nami settled down.
"Meat," Luffy mumbled in his sleep.
Law growled.
"Hey, woman. Seems like your luck hasn't run out yet," King Baum said.
"What?" Nami asked.
"Over there. It's Germa 66." King Baum pointed in front of himself.
Neo looked to her right and saw a carriage rolling down the road with several men marching behind it.
"You see Sanji?!" Luffy, back to his normal size, sat up. "Hey! Sanji!" He jumped off the tree and ran for his friend.
Neo summoned her wings and followed him.
"Neo! Wait!" Law warped himself down to the ground.
"It feels like it's been forever!" Luffy leaped into the air.
"Sanji!" Neo waved as Luffy jumped again and grabbed onto the carriage's door, making it rock. Suddenly, Luffy went flying back towards her. She stopped and landed. Sanji had his leg extended in the air. He had kicked Luffy. "Sanji... why?"
"Leave you filthy, lowly sea thugs." Sanji glared down at Luffy. "My name is Vinsmoke Sanji. I'm a prince of Germa kingdom. I apologize for hiding it from you all until now. But I have my reasons. I didn't want all of you to develop an inferiority complex for being such worthless peasants when standing in my presence..."
"What are you saying?!" Neo asked. Laughter rose up from the carriage. She looked over to find the man with green hair. "It's you."
Beside him were two other men. They wore smiles of delight. In front of them sat a large man with a mop of blonde hair and Reiju. All but the larger man had curly eyebrows. The three younger men looked almost identical to Sanji.
"Sanji's family," Neo whispered. Her eyes lifted to Sanji. He held a glare on his face, but there was something else there. Panic. Desperation. Sanji... What are they doing to you? She took a step closer. "Sanji!"
Sanji didn't even look at her. His eyes remained locked on Luffy. "As long as I stay here, wealth, soldiers, servant... all of it will be at my beck and call. Return to your ship and gallivant and roam the seas with you buffoons. Or stay put and live in eternal glory wanting for absolutely nothing with Big Mom's beautiful daughter by my side?"
Neo's heart tightened at his words.
"I'm sure even the world's biggest idiot can tell which of those two is the better option here. You guys really need to learn how to read between the lines. All that I wrote in the letter was just to soften the blow on you guys. I'm not coming back! To think that you'd be dumb enough to-"
"Stop it!" Neo screamed, tears running down her cheeks. "You don't mean that!"
Sanji ignored her and continued talking. "To think that you'd be dumb enough to come all the way here. Sucks to be you but it was all in vain. Be gone. Wait. What was your name again?"
"Screw that! I'm not buying any of that crap!" Luffy said.
Yonji laughed. "This is so rich! Here, I'll help you get rid of these pests. Well, all of them but for the blue haired woman. I think I'll keep her."
Neo recoiled.
"You stay out of this, Yonji!" Sanji hissed. "I'll be the one to take all this trash back to where they belong!"
"What do you mean by that, Sanji?" Luffy asked.
"He doesn't mean anything!" Neo said. "He's lying! Why are you lying to us, Sanji?!" Again she was ignored. "Sanji!"
"Go back." Sanji stalked towards Luffy. "I don't know what impulse you're acting on this time, but I thank you for coming all the way out here in the first place. However, from where I stand, this gesture of yours is completely and utterly without meaning! You guys are nothing but a tiny, ragtag bunch of dirt poor pirates while Big Mom's crew not only rules with an iron fist but has the kinds of riches and wealth one can only dream of. Now ask yourself, which do you think would make me happier?"
"You're lying!" Neo stepped in front of him. "Stop it, Sanji! Stop lying!"
Sanji placed his hand on her shoulder and pushed her out of his way. "Let me be blunt here, pirate captain. I've always had serious doubts that someone of your ilk could ever become the pirate king. Any sane, reasonable person would put his money on the prize horse, which is what I'm doing. You're acting in direct conflict to my best interest. Can we agree on that?"
"That's going too far, Sanji!" Nami screamed. "You can't possibly believe the words that are coming out of your mouth!"
Sanji glared at Nami.
"Then... this entire time... you've been lying to us... lying to me," Luffy said.
"Well, it took you long enough. Truth is, it's been embarrassing associating with you lowly thugs." Sanji spun on his right leg. Flaming he lifted it up. "And to make sure you do just that, I'll beat it into your body. On guard. Diable Jambe!"
"No! Sanji, don't!" Neo rushed forward.
"No!" Law grabbed her wrist and pulled her to his chest.
"Let me go! Law! I have to stop this!" Neo struggled against his hold. "He's lying! He's lying! That's not... Sanji would never say things like that!"
"There's nothing you can do. Just stay put. I know you don't want to watch this," Law said.
Neo flinched. Warm tears flooded her cheeks as her forehead dropped against his chest. He was right. Her magic was gone. And she didn't want to see Luffy and Sanji fight each other. She gritted her teeth against the blows she heard. Luffy refused to fight his friend. Sanji... Why? Why are you doing this? I know you're lying. So why? Neo gripped Law's shirt. "Make it stop."
"It'll be fine." Law rubbed her back. "Ignore it. Block it out."
Neo whimpered and tried to hum a song to herself. The seconds seemed to drag on before Law finally told her it was over. She forced herself to turn around.
Nami had gotten off the tree at some point. The navigator walked towards Sanji. Lifting her hand she slapped him. "Sorry to have bothered you. We'll leave."
Sanji turned and climbed back on the carriage.
"No," Neo whispered.
"You ain't getting off that easy, Sanji!" Luffy cried out as the carriage pulled away. "Third rate pirates?! Cut the crap! I've never heard you say anything so fake and forced! You're a terrible liar! You really think that's going to be enough to get rid of me? That's going to be enough to make me turn my back on you?! You of all people shoulder know better! The more you kicked me... the harder you kicked me... I wasn't the one feeling that pain!"
"I think he kicked you one too many times in the head Luffy! I don't care what his reasons are, he crossed the line!" Nami said.
"I don't want to hear it!" Luffy said. "We're not done yet! Our adventures are waiting for us! I'm not budging an inch from this spot! If you don't come back soon then this will be the final resting spot of my shriveled up corpse after I starve today!"
"Luffy..." Neo's heart took a painful beat.
Luffy took a deep breath and continued, "There's no way I'm letting the best chef walk away so easily! In fact, I'm not taking another bite of anything unless it comes from your hands! I'm going on a hunger strike! Come hail or high water! I won't be budging from this spot until you come back! Don't make me wait long, Sanji! Without you, I won't... I can't become king of the pirates!"
Neo watched as the carriage continued on down the road. Sanji had heard him. She knew he did. And she knew something wasn't right. This wasn't Sanji. Sanji would never hurt his friends. Sanji would never ignore her like he did. Her magic came back. Lifting her hands she stared at them. She wanted the truth. And she was going to get it. With her mind set she vanished into the wind and followed after her friend.
"Neo! What are you doing?! Come back here!" Law called for her.
'I can't, Law. I have to follow him. I'll be all right. Take care of Luffy for me.'
"Neo, you can't take off like this. Come back this second!"
'Law, please. I know Sanji was lying. If anyone will get him to tell the truth right now it's going to me.'
Law sighed.
Rain fell down on them
"Okay," Law said. "But be extremely careful. And if you think things are going to turn to the worse get out of there and come back to me."
'I will, Law.'
...
Law rubbed his forehead.
"Hey, where did Neo go?" Nami asked while looking around. "Wasn't she right here?"
"She went after Blackleg." Law turned to them.
"What?!" Nami gasped. "She can't do that! We all heard what he said! He's not our friend! He's made his choice!"
"He was lying." Law nodded to Luffy. "Even he knows that. Neo is going to try and get the truth from him."
"I hope she can do that. What do we do now?" Nami sighed.
"Not much we can do right now." Law scanned the area. They were in an open area. No place to hide. "We must prepare for an attack."
"An attack?" Nami asked.
"There's no way Big Mom will not attack us," Law said.
"I don't care!" Luffy crossed his arms, eyes hard with determination. "I'm still not moving!"
"And we're going to have to babysit this child." Law glared at Luffy.
...
Neo followed the carriage, praying that her magic would last long enough for her to get inside and find a good place to hide. She eyed the crowds lined along the road. Apparently several people had come to see the royal family. Does everyone in Big Mom's territory know about this wedding?
The carriage slowed to a stop in front of the castle. Sanji and his family left the carriage and went inside.
Neo continued to follow, carefully placing herself against the ceiling so no one would noticed her or feel her wind. For a second she wondered if Sanji could sense her there before dismissing it. Surely not. If he knew she figured he would get her alone and tell her to leave.
They winded down a couple halls before stepping into an indoor garden. A table had been set out under a pavilion. Seven places had been set with dishes.
Sanji and his family sat down.
Neo lowered herself behind a column and watched. A few minutes later Big Mom and Pudding came into the area. Servants moved in and out of the room, delivering food that spoke and sang. She cringed. That's just creepy. How can anyone eat food that talks?
Nearly two hours passed before the dinner finally broke up. Nothing important or worrisome happened. Neo noticed Sanji and Pudding exchanging something but from her hiding spot she was unable to see what it was.
Neo noticed Sanji leaving with Pudding. Turning back into the wind she followed them.
Pudding led Sanji into a room.
Before the door could close, Neo slipped inside. The door closed. Her magic gave out. She squeaked in surprised and plummeted.
"Neo!"
Neo stopped falling. Cigarette smoke tickled her nose. She looked up into Sanji's worried eyes. He had caught her. "I knew it. You were lying. You still care about us."
Sanji sighed and whispered, "Of course I do. I could never hate any of you, especially you."
"Then why?" Neo asked.
Sanji adverted his eyes. "You shouldn't be here. Do you have any idea what they would do if they find you?"
"I don't care. I'm not leaving," Neo said firmly. "I came here to talk to you. And you are going to tell me the truth."
Sanji closed his eyes and sighed again. He lowered himself and Neo to the floor.
Once her feet were back on the ground, Neo turned to Pudding with a glare. "And you! Why did you say you were going to bring Sanji to us then didn't?!" She stomped towards Pudding. "You lead us to that crazy forest on purpose, to ambush us, didn't you?! Answer me!"
"Neo, wait." Sanji held her back by the shoulders.
"Please, forgive me." Pudding bowed her head.
"Forgive you?!" Neo hissed. She moved to pull away from Sanji when her energy gave out on her. Her kneels buckled.
"Neo." Sanji swooped her up and sat her on the couch then sat beside her. "Calm down. You know you don't seen to get upset like this."
"Then you shouldn't have left!" Neo snapped. "Do you have any idea how worried we've been?! I've had nightmares about you!"
Sanji ducked his head then turned to Pudding. "How do you know each other anyway?"
"We met near my shop," Pudding explained. "I gave them a map to guide them through the check points."
"I see. So that's how everyone got this far into Big Mom's territory," Sanji said.
"Yes." Pudding nodded. "I told them I would bring you there even though I never was going to."
Neo growled. "You're so lucky I don't have my magic right now."
"Huh? What do you mean?" Pudding asked.
"None of your business!" Neo snapped.
"Settle down now." Sanji rubbed Neo's head. "Law wouldn't want you getting upset like this." He looked back at Pudding. "It doesn't matter. I never would have gone anyway."
"Sanji." Neo took a hold of his hand. Her finger brushed against cold metal. She pushed up his sleeve to find a golden band around his wrist. "What is this?"
"I can explain it," Pudding said. "You see, Mama is so familiar with forced marriages, she makes it a point to put these ominous wristlets on people who give her the slightest inkling they might run. Once they are placed on someone that person no longer had any options."
"What?" Neo paled. "Don't tell me these are mini versions of the explosive collars used on slaves."
"They are." Pudding nodded.
"I take it your mama has the keys to these. If we wanted to steal them back... our only recourse is to take on and defeat her entire crew," Sanji said.
"It can't be! Has Mama already begun to move?" Pudding said.
"Yes." Sanji reached for his face.
Neo watched him with curiosity until he pealed something away from his skin. She gasped. Sanji's face was swollen and bruised. "Sanji! Who did this to you?!"
"My so called family."
"Those injuries!" Pudding covered her mouth.
"This is what they really think of me," Sanji said. "I'm nothing more than a failure in the eyes of my family. Empathy and compassion are foreign to them when it comes to me. I've never, not once, gotten joy in having been born a royal. That's why I left for the sea in the first place. In search of a place I wasn't even sure existed."
"The All Blue," Neo whispered.
"But if I try and resist this marriage... all of my friends... everyone I hold dear will suffer the consequences. To make matters worse, the man I consider my father, who happens to reside in the East Blue, is also at risk. They're just looking for an excuse to pound on that savior of mine too."
"Then why?!" Neo shot to her feet. Tears flowed over her cheeks. "Why didn't you tell us about this?! Why did you run off on your own?! You had us all worried! Do you have any idea of the nightmares I've had because you left?!"
"Neo." Sanji stood and pulled her into his arms. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to give you nightmares. This was the only thing I could do. I don't want my friends to fight against an emperor."
"Sanji." Neo wrapped her arms around his waist. She hiccuped. "You idiot. I understand that, but you how could you believe that Luffy would let you go like that? He followed Robin into the heart of Enies Lobby. And went after Ace at marine headquarters."
Sanji chuckled. "I hoped he would listen to my note."
"You are an idiot." Neo closed her eyes with a sigh.
"I'm so sorry!" Pudding wailed and covered her face with her hands. "My own mother has put all of you in such a precarious situation."
Sanji shook his head. "No, there's no need for you to apologize. None of this is your fault. Until thirteen years ago I lived in pure hell. I've returned to that hell now, but during those thirteen years I was away I was greeted with a lifestyle that allowed me to be incredibly happy. Everyone I met during that time... they're all my saviors. My only wish is to disappear from all their lives without hurting a single one of them."
"Idiot! Jerk!" Neo stomped on his foot then pounded her fists on his chest. "That's not going to happen! You hurt us already by leaving like you did!"
"Neo, don't cry." Sanji attempted to pull her back into a hug. "I really am sorry. But my adventures with the Straw Hats must come to an end here."
Neo jerked away from him. "Don't! Just stop! You're not going to do this! You will returned to your crew! You will return to the sea!"
"Oh man." Sanji rubbed his head.
"S-Sanji..." Pudding cried. "I... I... I won't let this marriage of ours turn into that kind of hell for you!"
"Shut up!" Neo stomped over to Pudding. "You're not marrying him! Sanji will come back to us!"
"Now, now, Neo. She's just trying to be helpful," Sanji cooed.
"No!" Neo hugged Sanji. "You can't have him! He's with us! He's mine!"
Pudding blinked a couple times. "Uh, what's with her?"
"Forgive her. She's pregnant and having mood swings," Sanji said.
"Oh, I see." Pudding smiled. "It's okay. Um, Neo, was it?"
"No." Neo glared.
Pudding chuckled, nervously. "I promise I will be good to Sanji."
"Promise all you want. I don't believe you. I never will." Neo tightened her hold on Sanji. "You can't be trusted. You've lied to us. You're not our friend."
"Okay. I think that's enough for now," Sanji said. "I'm going to take Neo to my room. Please, don't tell anyone she's here."
Pudding nodded. "I won't."
"Liar," Neo grumbled.
"Okay, you. Let's go." Sanji led Neo to the door then through the halls.