Sorry for being late, I was on holiday. You may or may not have noticed that I have changed the titles. This was done on my part to make things more organized, as was me going over and changing parts of the story. I decided to read the lost one's tale from start to finish and mentally cringed at some of it. I swear it sounds better in your head, maybe someday I might change it more than cosmetically. Another thing I found was that with THIS chapter the childhood will be the longest.
Golden king Gilgamesh: I'm sorry you think that way. When I re-read the fanfic I did also notice that between the first five chapters and the jungle arc Lucy shifts noticeably in personality. This was to reflect that she was starting to come out of her shell and releasing her repressed emotions, becoming the person she always was before cutting herself off. I'm sure that if you bear with me, I can promise that the story will speed up in pace, right now I'm taking it slow as I establish the characters.
Writing in italics
Techniques and devil fruits in underline
Daily fun fact: When French merchants visited the blue mosque in Istanbul in the 17th February they were so impressed by the use of turquoise stones that when they got back to France they talked of the turquoise colour. The word turquoise directly translates to the word 'Turkish' from French as a monument to this.
I DON'T OWN ONE PIECE, and I never will
Chapter 14 start:
What followed that fateful discussion was a flurry of activity as all the bandits sat in the semi-circle suddenly shot up and left for places unknown. On each of their faces was a look of barely concealed relief, most likely for being able to get away from their bi-polar boss.
Lucy didn't observe them for long. Dogra had also gotten up and after a brief chat with Makino had led the both of them around the back to the log cabin. At this point Lucy just felt numb, she had recessed back into her mind and the only reason she followed the dwarf was because Makino was literally dragging her along by her hand.
The moment she let go Lucy just stopped in place and then sat down, staring into the distance with a blank look on her face. When had it all gone so wrong? Was she doomed to fail from the start?
She had followed Shanks advice and tried to follow a path that she wanted to follow. It might not have been the most glamorous of lives, working in Party's bar, most likely inheriting it from Makino when the woman decided to retire. Compared to a world of 'adventure' and 'mystery' it wasn't even on the same wave length, but it was what she wanted to do. Story, fate, everyone else be damned. Wasn't that why she had this hat? As a reminder that she could choose her own path?
Yet fate still threw curve balls. They smashed against her unprepared body and broke her nose, gave her bruises. And no matter how much she tried to brace herself, to shield herself from them, they still smashed into her with malicious intent. She still took the brunt of their onslaught.
For the first time ever she had done something that she wanted to do, she had made a decision about her own future and found a way to achieve it. It wasn't enough, it was never enough. Fate, the hound that tears the unprepared apart, was dragging her along by the chain wrapped around her neck, the one that said 'protagonist', dragging her along towards the main story with a gleeful chuckle.
And pulling her chain along with that monstrosity was Makino, staring back at her.
Her silent despair at the unfairness of this predicament turned first to anger, as she cursed Makino inside her own head, then self depreciating mirth, at herself for being such a fool to think she could ever get what she wanted, and then desperation, as she relentlessly tried to figure out a way to get what she wanted. She was damned whatever path she took, her life had shown that for the ugly truth it was.
If she ran away now she could possibly get a couple months of freedom until Garp came swinging by to drag her back. The cost of this choice was massive however, considering Dadans actions earlier she would put Makino in the firing line, and anger the people she would probably end up with in the end. If she stayed she would be drawn more and more towards the story, that's not to even mention the horrendous conditions she would have to live in.
Why was she stuck here to suffer?
"Lucy?" The sound of Makino's voice broke through her frantic and depressing thoughts. Lucy turned towards her in a robotic jerky manor that probably expressed how she was feeling in a way words just couldn't. Makino seemed to realize this too as she walked over and sat down next to her, but not before pausing like she didn't want to spook a cornered animal.
Lucy refused to meet the woman's eyes.
The silence went on for around four seconds before Makino hesitantly reached out and grabbed her hand, then in a motherly way stroked a finger along her palm. Still Lucy refused to even look at her.
Makino must have been getting desperate after another brief silence because she ventured forth "Lu?...Lu please look at me" but Lucy carried on refusing to meet her gaze. She wasn't sure whether she could hide her small bursts of anger from her eyes, as much as Makino had wronged her she didn't want her only friend to see her feelings of betrayal.
But Makino was nothing if not persistent. She once again ventured forth her attempts to open Lucy up like a clam "Lu I beg you...please...I...I'm sorry ok" something made Lucy pause. For all that she was annoyed at the woman, she just couldn't help but look at her after her regretful apology.
At her meeting the woman's eyes she seemed to lose some of her tension. Makino felt slightly more confident and carried on the conversation "I know how my actions probably weren't well received, but I was doing it to protect you" Protect her? Protect her? By making her be a lamb marked for slaughter.
"How?" She started, unsure of how you go about any of this "How were they to protect me?" At 'they' she motioned towards Dogra who was standing uncomfortably in the background. Why couldn't Makino see what type of people these bandits were? The woman herself had even made a comment on it in the hut.
The bartender paused for a couple seconds, as if she wanted to keep a particular piece of information secret. Then the woman reluctantly told her "There are dangerous people after you Lucy" Lucy had to pause at that. She distinctly remembered someone saying that recently, then it hit her. Garp had mentioned the same, back before dumping her in the jungle.
Still despite pausing mentally, she still hung onto her anger, though at this point it was by a thread and bitterly said "And are these any better, murders and thieves. Using me for free labor while they underfeed me?" Makino didn't wince or shy away at her outburst. Instead she reached across the small distance between them and patted her head like a cat.
With that done the woman carried on trying to talk to the disgruntled child who had been trying really hard to hate the woman but finding that she couldn't "I know it seems crazy putting you with these people. If I didn't know any better I would agree"
Still she had no idea why someone was after her, or why this mattered. With a small pause and a raised eye brow she asked "...What are you saying Makino, get to the point"
Makino didn't take offence to her tone and instead smiled slightly, though, Lucy could see through it. Something had shaken her friend to the point of unease "When you were...in the jungle" She started, Lucy listened quietly though almost lost her cool at the next part "..I had a talk with your Grandfather"
Her Grandfather, what had the madman done this time? If he had harmed Makino in anyway, or told her lies then...What could she do to the man? He was a person that she couldn't even touch, and any attempt to talk to him would be met with stubborn resistance. Still she could curse him in her own mind. Which she promptly did. Makino must have noticed the brief flash of anger that crossed her face before she smothered it with a mask of indifference because she hurriedly carried on "Well it's more factually correct to say he explained something's to me"
Her response was short and swift "And you believe that madman?"
Makino must have misinterpreted the level of content she possessed for her biological grandfather because she flinched slightly. The anger that had been coming and going like waves at the beach all day had returned, and it was high tide. Makino might not have known it but mentioning her Grandfather was probably the fastest way to anger her she'd found. In comparison Dadan didn't register, even Ace was outshined, she didn't know why but that didn't matter. Makino unaware of her thoughts carried on "...I have no reason not too, he was...different than usual"
That answer made something pause, Garp the embodiment of stubbornness and autism was different? Lucy couldn't quite believe that, she refused to believe that. The man was the embodiment of a hard headed gramps who refused to except that he was wrong and the world had moved on. Still Lucy listened to Makino as the woman carried on "He was quiet and serious, and when he was speaking I could feel he was being honest"
Lucy wanted to believe that it was all a joke, that she every word out of Makino's mouth was all but a bad dream and with a start she would wake up. But in the end she reluctantly started to accept it. Makino seemed serious about her encounter with the old marine, and so Lucy begrudgingly accepted the fact. With nothing else holding her back she joined the conversation again, not to argue but to understand "What did he say?"
At her question Makino took an uncertain breath in, then with notable fear and worry in her eyes said "That people, dangerous people, were snooping around in the area. Foosha village was no longer safe for you….. He explained that with Red haired Shanks discovering your identity, he had drawn in unwanted eyes" But by the end of her reveal the woman must have noticed her demeanor change because she buried the emotion somewhere inside.
Lucy was first confused about the statement, people were snooping around Foosha village? Then a voice popped up in her head that asked 'so why didn't this happen to Luffy? Have I really affected the world to a substantial degree by my interactions with Shanks?' The logical part of her brain quickly shot back that it was likely that this happened in the original timeline after Shanks returned to the Grand line missing one arm. Still that opened up several questions, firstly who was snooping around Foosha village? Secondly why were they a danger to her? And finally why did they follow behind Shanks? It was unlikely that the Yonko and the major new world players had operatives looking at this backwater of an island. Unless Lucy was completely underestimating the pirates of the new world, which now that she thought about it was an uncomfortable possibility. All of a sudden her displeasure over staying at Dadans shifted, to unease surrounding this mystery. If what Makino was saying was true, then wouldn't she cause significant amounts of danger to Makino, to Mayor Wood-Slap, to the villagers if she stayed. And if that was the case, was she trapped between a rock and a hard place?
And not for the first time, Life seemed to be a joke of poor choices.
During her mental debate she had zoomed out of everything. Makino probably from knowing her so well simply let her ponder the information in silence. With a start Lucy asked the question weighing down on her the most "...who?" Though she wouldn't lie, it felt heavy on her lounge.
Makino's answer was short but devastating "The Marines"
What? No way in hell! The marines her ass! There was no conceivable way that it was true! In fact she felt so strongly about it she blurted out "But he's part of the marines!"
Makino only gave her a small chuckle, then with a sad smile that told Lucy that she didn't like the information either said "I know it sounds unbelievable, trust me"
No matter what Makino said Lucy couldn't picture in her head. The giant she called her 'Grandfather' was so sure of his own ideals that he would let his own Grandson be killed, and while he cried, he was willing to support justice over his heart. The man would most likely commit genocide for the sake of his ideals. Heck he was so willing to follow his own sense of how the world should work that he threw her into a jungle to potentially die. So forgive her if she didn't understand how any of this made sense.
In the end she simply rejected the idea that her Grandfather would even look out for her. But even as she quickly countered with "The man spent the ten days he was here to beg me to join the marines" a seed of doubt flowered in her heart. 'It's possible' it sang over and over, and no matter how much she tried to repress the notion of it. The idea that her Grandfather could be looking out for her, or at least pulling strings for her sake, stuck like mud to clothing.
It was usually Lucy who took long pauses in conversations, but this time Makino took a good long pause. On her face was a conflict raging like a battlefield, first uncertainty, and then resolve crept in, and then finally acceptance. It took only a couple of seconds before the bar keep carried on, speaking words that she obviously didn't want to speak "Lucy, you might not know it yet...but a lot of people want your head. Your father has caused the world government large amounts of trouble...should they find out of your existence then they will stop at nothing to get to you."
The small seed grew into a flower as it bloomed into life, its tendrils blossoming throughout her conscious. It didn't sing 'It's possible' anymore it sang 'It's true'.
First came the denial, the idea that her Grandfather would do anything for her was quickly torn apart by logic and evidence. But even after being butchered mercilessly by her hatred for the man it still persisted. And no matter how she tried to resist the idea it kept coming back. Until she stripped her anger from the equation and came to an astounding conclusion.
…her grandfather was…protecting her. All this time she had hated him, and he was trying to keep her alive. Back in the forest when he said 'Your existence has been noticed… we do not have time to lose before anyone else comes for you' he meant… the marines. Her grandfather, the bane of her life who would in an instant swoop in and ruin everything…he had been protecting her. All this time she realized the 'possibility' that the world government would lash back at Dragon, but it never crossed her mind that she was always a day away from dying. And now that it was in her face, waving around in front of her attention like a flashing light she couldn't ignore it. All her life she had been so close to dying, and yet it never came…her grandfather had been protecting her all this time.
And like that the world of what she thought was fact started to crumble. In a hopeless effort to contain the shards crashing about her a part of her rejected the idea screaming 'He might off told Makino a lie!' but even that was swept away in the avalanche. If what she thought about Garp was false, what else did she believe in that was not true? And if this was the case, that Foosha village was too dangerous to be in, did that leave only Dadans hideout? No matter what she did, no matter how much she protested, would she would always end up in this place? Most likely, because that was the only place she could ever be free from the noose around her neck.
As she sat in stunned silence having to reevaluate her ideals she blurted out"...Dragon?" Makino at the name took in a short but deep breath as her posture tensed almost to the point of rigidity before bouncing back and unwinding. Though in her posture was an underling tension that the woman never had even after a full day's work. She answered her rhetorical with answer spoken so softly and quietly that it was like velvet "Yes"
What followed was an uneasy silence as both of the waited. Lucy was happy in the end at the pause as she spent the time to scream and shout in her own head. Raging like a storm against the cliff face, why was her life so messed up? Why couldn't she live a normal life? Why was she here? What had she ever done to the Gods?! No matter what she did was she forever cursed to follow Luffy, have his childhood, his dream, his friends, and his fight? Why? Why?
In the end she just gave up trying to answer any of them. It was a waste of time anyway. She had ended up with a tyrannical government that literally controlled the world after her head. This government was now forcing her to flee from her home in fear of being executed for crimes of a man she had never met. So she was being forced to live with people who in her previous life would be considered monsters by society, by her grandfather, who let us not forget, was also not a very good guy by any measure except perhaps a government owned newspapers opinion poll.
And she was caught in the bloody middle of it.
Let us also not forget the fact that right now, her own beliefs and views of the world were falling apart at the seams. So forgive her if she wanted to curse this world with every fiber of her small body! Forgive her if she cursed the Gods! Forgive her for never wanting to be part of this stupid joke called her life! Forgive her for wanting a peaceful death and to not be stuck in the body of an eight year old girl!
Makino's hand interrupted her ranting, as it reached over gently and grabbed her own. At that point Lucy realized that she had been holding onto her breath for a bit too long as she stared at the floor, with a deep exhale she let out all the air into the surroundings. Then with a big, deep inhale she tried and partially managed to smother her thoughts before they devoured her. Makino in the meanwhile was rubbing small circles on her palm, and while Lucy wasn't focusing on it she appreciated the effort.
They stayed like that for a while, Makino just rubbing small circles into her hand and she just trying to get her thoughts under control. She repeated the same breathing technique that remembered from what little yoga she got into in the last life, inhale through the nose, count to two, exhale through the mouth, count to two, repeat and repeat. In the end she just leaned into Makino's flank, head resting against the woman's body as she focused on her breathing, and only her breathing.
She carried on focusing on her breathing until the soft sound of Makino carrying on their conversation alerted her that the world still existed ''Do you understand now Lucy?'' Did she feel ready for a conversation? No. Did she have a choice? Also no. With a sigh she removed herself from the woman's flank and sat back up. When she met Makino's eyes the woman carried on ''Do you understand the dangers coming for you?''
Silence was her only response, but Makino probably realized quickly that it was an inevitability so quickly carried on "That's why you have to stay here it's the only safe place you can go"
At this point Lucy didn't have the energy to counter her fully. She just felt numb, like the time in the jungle when the monkeys stole her stuff. So half-heartedly she shot back "You call mass murders and thieves safe? They already proved they don't care about me"
Dogra who at this point, reading a week old newspaper on his old broken stool, had been ignoring them for the last five minutes as she had a breakdown. Still Lucy noticed that the dwarf was quite obviously listening in to their conversation. He could do whatever he wanted at this point, and she would just turn a blind eye to it.
Makino also noticed the slight movement the man made when he noticed that both of them had been staring at him but didn't comment, instead rebuffing her point with a soft counter argument "I know, but you don't have a different choice. You see to the government they don't exist, or I should say it is not confirmed they exist"
That caught Lucy's attention, how was that possible? It was quite clear that the bandits were well known on Dawn Island, even Mayor Wood-Slap knew about them and Lucy couldn't see the Dadan bandits regularly going out of their way to visit Foosha. The likeliness that whatever police force existed on this island at least knew of the bandits existence was almost guaranteed. So how in the world were they not on the World government radar? No matter how small a pirate group was in the world the marines kept track of their movements, or at least noted their existence. Heck even Higuma had a bounty indicating that bandits were also kept track off to a degree.
Realizing that trying to answer the question in her own head without all the information was a fool's game she turned to her two companions and asked "How?"
The person who answered her question was not Makino, but surprisingly Dogra, who for the first time since they stepped foot in the little wood carving area around the back of the bandit hut had actively contributed to the conversation. With a sudden flurry of motion he took the comically large newspaper in comparison to his body and closed it while stating in his squeaky voice "Garp has been removing any mention of us from government records. The only thing the government knows is that we might exist."
So that's why her Grandfather had wanted her to stay here. All this time he was breaking the rules to ensure that this place was safe and secure from any government eyes. But why? Then it hit her, Ace. Her adopted brother had spent all his life growing up in this hideout, and so her grandfather had been diverting attention to keep him safe. If that was the case then the real reason he came only a couple of weeks after Shanks had left, was to move her here. It had bugged her why she never saw her Grandfather before three months ago, but now it all made sense. If he was actively diverting attention away from the Goa kingdom to protect Ace then any attempt to visit her would draw in attention to the island in a heartbeat. The world government would be watching and when they realized that a bandit group existed on the island they would try seek it out, naturally drawing their attention to Ace and her.
But then why now? It was expressed in the manga, even by Ace himself that the man does yearly visits to the island. So why wouldn't the world government respond then? Why was it only now that the world government was snooping? A thread of logic passed in front of her face and she grasped it, the only logical conclusion was Shanks. The world government had been drawn into looking at the island because something had caught one of the world's most prominent pirate's attention enough to stay for the better part of a year. Then Garp realizes that the world government is looking too close for his comfort and most likely offers to investigate. Which gives him the opportunity to move her to Dadan, and out of sight while he does a symbolic check and reports a negative to the government, drawing those curious eyes away from Goa again.
Well that was probably what happened, without asking her Grandfather it was all speculation. But still, it all seemed to fit together. Of course that meant Ace was right, Garp on discovering her in Foosha would quickly Wisk her away back to Dadans hideout and away from any nosy eyes.
So she was, in the end, never capable of leaving this place even if she wanted too. The thought left something inside her feeling so empty, she didn't know what bit but it still rippled through her.
Makino looked desperate at the lack of responses she was getting. In fact her breath was slightly more drawn out and wavy than usual. Eventually the woman couldn't seem to take it as she almost begged "Look Lucy, please give it another chance. If you win the bet, you'll be in a much better position than you were. It will be better for you" Still a part of her that rejected all of this as a lie, something that Garp had told Makino to make her stay here flared up. It kept chanting 'it's all a rouse, don't believe it' and while it didn't dominate her, now that she knew the truth she accepted it no matter how much it hurt, it still convinced her to make one last attempt. One last push to live out her days in Foosha, living an easy life, because no matter how she viewed it, staying here would push her more and more to following Luffy's path. No matter if she was starting to accept that staying here was a necessary evil, she refused to walk down his path, she wasn't ready for that and probably never would be. "I want to be with you though...not with these...people" Even when saying it, Lucy could recognize that at this point she wasn't even invested in it herself.
For her comment she received a pinch to her hand curtsey of Makino as the woman quickly apologized for her choice of words "Please forgive her Mr. Dogra"
Said dwarf didn't rise to the comment however, he had opened his newspaper back up earlier, and simply commented back over the top of it saying "Ok whatever"
With her apology accepted the green haired woman, once again turned to begging "Lucy please"
But silence was her only answer.
Lucy hated this part of her, for all that she enjoyed commenting in her own mind she could never find it within herself to convert that into speaking. How did she explain to Makino that she understood? How did she explain what she felt to the woman who had been her only companion for all these years? If staying at Foosha village was going to bring destruction around her, then was she willing to make that sacrifice? Her heart said yes, but a piece of her was cursing the idea to the heavens. The one that sung of what she could gain from staying at Foosha, all the easy days spent with a book in her hand and the sea by her side. What could she get here but misery and work.
In the end she couldn't force herself to comment. It was not that she couldn't more that she wasn't able. The conflict between the two sides of arguing were still in full swing.
Makino at the rejection to her begging paused in desperation then she let out a sigh "I will always remember the day I found you" The raging of her mind was silenced as the woman started. Lucy at first was confused where this was going then was shocked into silence when it carried on "I was 12, working in my father's bar and there was a howling storm raging outside. And there was a bang like lightning had struck the roof. Then came a knock on the door so hard it sounded like the wind itself was trying to get in. I remember walking over in a daze and opening the door...and there you were"
A misty look over took Makino's eyes, even the small palm rubbing she had been doing stopped. It seemed as if the woman had retreated into a place Lucy had never seen her go into before. Then as if in a trance she carried on.
"Wrapped in a blanket from head to toe, bawling your eyes out. The only possession you had was a little piece of paper that said your name 'Monkey D Lucy'. I remember begging my father to let us keep you, in the end he gave in. He said 'if you want her so much, you keep her'" At this a sad smile crossed her face. Makino was obviously reliving the memory. Then her face turned down at the corners as a different memory must have surfaced.
"Even as a baby you were difficult, you were so jaded, uncaring and despondent. You were so hard to take care for, but I endeavored, even when my father passed away at age 16" Towards the end of it the woman seemed to lose any type of smile left and her mouth drooped into a frown and Lucy didn't know what to do. She didn't know how to help her friend, how to console her. This was the first time she had ever heard Makino complain about her to her face, and Lucy hated it. Looking back she was such a horrible child to foster mother, it must have been hell after losing her father. That feeling rocked about her, silencing any debate and despite almost pausing several times she took the woman's hand into her own and gave it a little squeeze.
The feeling seemed to jolt Makino out of the place she had been. Instead the frown slowly quirked back up and she gave Lucy a little squeeze back, the tight grip of her hand not bothering the girl in the slightest. After composing herself again the woman carried on.
"Over the years you opened up more and more, and I started to believe you are my family... No you are my family. That's why I can't let you stay with me, right now there is a power beyond my control that will kill you. As your mother I am willing to do anything to protect you" After she had finished Makino brought her other hand to encapsulate Lucy's hand in both of hers. With that done the bar keep of Party's bar looked Lucy straight in the eyes with her warm brown ones.
"These people have the possibility to keep you safe, I don't like it, and I know you don't either. But I have no choice. Even if you rant and rave… I have to leave you here" With that done she patted one of her hands on Lucy hand and then through the ball into Lucy's court.
How do you respond to that? Lucy didn't know, she didn't know what to think. The idea of staying at Foosha anymore felt…tainted to her. All of a sudden it felt as if she had to go and stay here, her friend was hurting so much because of her, and she had thrown petrol onto the fire. Makino had accepted that she would never see her again, and by going back, she had only caused more pain and suffering for her friend. That didn't feel right to her. As she felt guilt in her mind she realized that it was her turn to speak. It wasn't as elegant as Makino's but Lucy started small hoping to get across her guilt "Makino…I….I understand"
At her response Makino gave a small smile. Then quietly said "That's good Lucy…I know it's hard. But it has to be done"
All of a sudden the feelings that were inside of her that cried out in protest at the green haired woman leaving her life jumped up and she frantically shot out "Will I be able to see you?"
Makino gave a little chuckle at her outburst, then replied "No matter what happens, I will always be here when you need me" With that said she lent down and gave her a kiss on her forehead. Then Makino slowly got to her feat, using one hand to help herself up. Then Lucy felt a tug as Makino smiled down to her and said "Now then Lucy, let's show that ginger haired bandit we are more than capable of overcoming her challenge"
With a big pull she was standing again, hand in hand with the person who was as close to a mother as one got in her situation and she felt only one thing.
'Dadan won't know what hit her'
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After that they got started, it wasn't quick by any means, in fact Lucy was simply going through the motions for the first couple. The conversation from before still weighing on her, as she assessed mentally what had happened. It was only when she got too close to the wood that instead of partitioning it, she managed to flicked it so hard that she was sure would bruise her fingertips that she realized that she should pay attention. After a couple of minutes with her finger in her mouth it came to her that she should probably utilize her newest discovery about her devil fruit. That her power followed her finger, and so she started to activate her power while drawing circles to make the handles. Unlike her previous creations that were at best circular with odd angles these were all perfect… well as perfect as the circles she could draw. Naturally not having to do hundreds of small cuts, eliminated tens of minutes of time from each. Even when she accidently ruined one by partitioning a cylinder of wood all the way through the log, preventing her from making a bowl she wasted only seconds of time and not the eternity from before.
The next best thing was Makino. When her honest mistake of a cylinder of wood was burned the woman would simply smile back and offer small pieces of encouragement. It made the task so much less tedious when there was actually someone telling you that you are not a failure.
It took about three spoons before she could effectively get the handle to near perfection, even Dogra who had been sitting on his stool reading the newspaper, and only looking up to assess each new creation, was impressed by the craftsmanship. Though considering most of it was her devil fruit power, well all of it, it wasn't that impressive.
Still the bowls of both the spoon and the bowls themselves were still much harder, both being naturally curved they didn't fit well with her power that could only cut straight lines. So she was once again forced to cut very small slivers of wood of each time. Makino unsurprisingly was drawn like a moth to the flame, as she stared at the abnormal activity in front of her in wonder. The little surprised look the woman gave when viewing a devil fruit in use brought a little smile to Lucy's face, sometimes it felt good to have a power, if only to show off to your friends.
It was on Lucy's first bowl of the third day that something very interesting happened
''I don't get why you're going so slowly Lucy, can't you cut out the wood at an angle?'' Asked Makino who after watching her carve four spoons, had finally asked some of the questions Lucy knew the woman must have had.
''No Makino, my power only works in straight lines. That means I have to take my time when doing the bowls, because I have to cut lots of small cuts to get the curve'' But even with her explanation the woman still seemed confused about the whole process. If there was a way to completely cut out the time wasted trying to cut bowls then she would happily take it.
Makino seemed content for a couple of seconds, then her curiosity must have gotten too much because she asked something that made Lucy pause ''But if it follows your finger then surely the angle you point your finger will affect the cut? …Right?''
…..why didn't she think of that? She stopped her lazy finger flick and turned to look at her green haired friend and blurted out ''what?''
Makino all of a sudden in the spot light from both her and Dogra who had finally joined in simply smiled and uncomfortable smile and repeated ''If it follows your finger then surely the angle you point your finger will affect what gets partitioned'' Then she demonstrated by grabbing a piece of scrap wood just large enough to be used and demonstrated her idea by drawing a rough circle not at nighty degrees to the wood, but at an angle that would theoretically create a cone. Lucy just stared at the piece of wood and simply thought 'Are you kidding me?'
After cursing her lack of ingenuity she tested out Makino's hypothesis and after drawing a rough circle with her finger angled towards the center a poorly made cone dropped out. Lucy picked it up and stared at it running her finger along the diagonal edge. Then she placed it in the fire, knowing at this point that anything not on the list would be burnt anyway.
With that done she abandoned the bowl she was making and got a new piece of wood from the pile she had placed there a day earlier. Taking a couple of seconds to view the diameter of the piece of wood she placed it on the floor and after mentally calculating the rough angle she needed to cut at, drew a circle with a slight angle towards the centre. After removing the excess wood she had a frustum (cone with the top chopped off) in her hand. Unlike her precious attempts at making bowls this was almost perfectly smooth, naturally considering it wasn't formed from thousands of little cuts. Still the 'bowl' wasn't fully formed as the sides were too high and the end product looked too big. That wasn't even mentioning that it was solid. But with a power as useful as hers for this task all it took was a flick of a finger to get the correct size.
Now all that was left was the inside of the bowl, which she puzzled with for a second before deciding to go with the same strategy she had originally used with its square predecessors. In a couple of seconds she had drawn a second cone like structure on the top of the frustum making sure not to cut through the bottom of the original. After she completed that task, she was stuck for a half a minute trying to figure out the angles to get the perfect diagonal cut but quickly realized that unlike a square that would be impossible. Instead she opted for a trying the same idea but cutting triangles from it like a big wooden cake. Despite her original doubts about it, in the end the idea worked perfectly and a wedge of wood fell out. It took her around a minute to repeat that process ten times before she had a bowl.
A beautiful, none square, bowl that made a small smile pop onto her face. It looked more like a plant pot with its straight sides, but it would be just as useable as a bowl. Nothing mattered now except the test, not even Makino's quiet but enthusiastic praise. Dogra was silent as she handed over the bowl, for once he was taking an interest in her endeavors instead of reading a newspaper or making wood carvings. He turned it around in his hands over and over, rubbing his hand over the sides to ensure that they were smooth. Then, and almost randomly, announced ''You've out done yourself kid, well done'' and put bowl down to the side of him and not in the fire.
Considering she hadn't heard a positive thing from the man since the challenge had started, his praise felt much more meaningful. Still the dwarf wasn't out of the woods yet, he still was on her list 'for those that have annoyed me' and so all her got was a simple head nod. It was only when she had turned around to go back and repeat her winning formula over and over again that she heard and uncertain ''Brat''
Naturally confused about what the bandit could want now the raven haired girl turned to look back over her shoulder at the man, giving him a raised eye brow. He paused for a second, a look of anxiousness on his face, and then seemed to all of a sudden burst into motion awkwardly staying ''I know that I did not come off in the best light. It's nothing personal…ok?'' Then he paused and rubbed the back of his head in an overly anime like style, seemingly getting more and more restless the longer she continued to stare at him in silence. Realizing that she wouldn't comment he pushed through and said ''I…I hope you forgive me''
Lucy didn't respond to the dwarf, and wasn't planning too until a side glance at Makino's disappointed face caused her to respond back in an equally awkward way ''Ugh…Yeah…I forgive you'' Just like that the bandit seemed satisfied with getting that piece of information. She paid it little mind as she walked over and got started on more important things.
The best time she had gotten on a bowl over the last three days, not counting the previous one, was roughly twenty minutes…. She finished the next one in thirty seconds. In fact it was such an amazing decrease in time that she fulfilled her quota of twenty seven bowls within the next twenty minutes. The object that took up almost all her time at the start had been conquered thoroughly with its loot left to be plundered. And plunder it she did.
It got to the point where Dogra wouldn't even look up from his newspaper, simply accepting them and putting them onto the rapidly growing pile of finished bowls.
Now all that she had to do were forty nine spoons, two chairs, eight combs and a wooden toy ship.
She had roughly two hours.
It was going to be an utter pain in her ass.
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Dadans hut-main hall- 20:59
The main hall was packed full of all the bandits that lived there, and once they passed the boundary into the room a wave of silence followed. It seemed that everyone had been waiting for the tonight's supper to see the outcome of the bet she made with Dadan. Most likely they had nothing else to do tonight and this was the perfect entertainment.
Dadan didn't seem to get the message though and was loudly moaning to Magra about everything and anything, Lucy even heard the words 'Brat' and 'God dammit Garp' being thrown about. Magra was trying and failing to stop the endless torrent of words coming out the woman's mouth, most likely to inform his boss that she had arrived but each time he got out a word Dadan would snap at him and force him back into silence.
In the end everyone was silently staring at the bandit leader. It wasn't until Makino cleared her throat very loudly that the woman even turned to look at them shouting ''what the hell do you want!'' over her girthy shoulders.
With a small smile on her face Makino replied ''we have come to tell you we have finished your task Mrs. Dadan''
For a moment Lucy was sure that Dadan had forgotten they existed, and most likely the task too, as she stared at them. Then a look of realization crossed her clouded over eyes and she happily said ''Lucy….Mabilaino welcome back, I hope you finished the task. We going to be eating with the finished products after all''
Instead of Makino replying like Lucy thought she would, it seemed the bar tender was going to stay out of it. Though she only realized that after no one took the role of stand bearer in the conversation. Quickly trying to make up for the pause she toneless replied ''I have managed to finish your task Dadan''
Impatient as ever the woman signaled with her big meaty arms in a cometh here motion while wheezing out ''Well go get them then, what are you waiting for?''
At her command Lucy and Makino brought out a bowl and spoon each from where they were carrying it by their sides. With measured steps they crossed the wooden floor of the main hall even staying there course when Dadan burst out ''Faster!''
When the finally got to the ginger haired woman they respectably put the items down in front of the leader and took a couple of steps away, partially to show respect but mostly so they were out of arms reach. Much like a child the bandit leader picked one up like a toy and started turning it over and over in her hands. After she had finished with the bowl in her hands she moved on until she had assessed all the objects in front of her.
The silence was deafening as Lucy waited for the final verdict of the last two hours of her work, then Dadan finally spoke ''Not bad, not bad at all. In fact it's very good'' for a moment Lucy thought the woman would go down without a fight and then a smirk over took Dadans face ''But where is the rest of it brat?''
However unlike all the other times when Dadan had managed to get the upper hand on her this time she was the one in control ''I couldn't carry them all, if you want to see them you'll need to either go outside or get your followers to bring them here''
She looked confused for a second and then slowly got to her feet, only truly staggering once. And with a big huff said ''Well let's get it over with then!''
The walk outside didn't take more than two minutes, though it was dragged on as Dadan would stop and ramble about wanting a drink multiple times during it. In the end though the entire population of the hideout was standing just past the ridge staring at the piles of objects she had just spent the last two hours making. Considering she had a winning formula for the bowls it didn't take her that long to modify it for the different objects. With all the time saved and an excess of wood she simply decided to just carry on making objects. The end result was a mountain of wooden goods a large collection of spoons, bowls, combs, chairs even just some random carvings of wooden animals from the scraps left on the floor. The only difficult things to make were the ship, which the overjoyed bandit received from Dogra, and the chairs considering she had no nails, but even then once she figured a way to make one it became just a simple chore.
Dadan obviously not expecting such a massive pile of objects walked over in a daze, Lucy would have considered it part of her intoxication but the surprise seemed to have opened the woman's eyes in a comedic over the top way. Hesitantly Dadan reached out and grabbed a piece, uncaring for the slight shift this caused for some of the wooden objects and stared out at it.
''Is everything accounted for Dogra?'' She asked in a quiet tone, complete at odds to her brash attitude from before.
Dogra responded in his high pitch voice ''Yes boss, everything is accounted for and more'' Dadan only gave a simple nod at that, then she called out again ''Brat!''
Suddenly in the lime light Lucy hesitantly called back ''Yes Dadan?''
Dadan paused and then swiveled around to face her, with a sudden movement the spoon in her hand shot out to point at the space between her eyes ''You've won the bet…I'll change your list of chores''
She had won. Well she already knew she had won when she took a step back from making objects close to the end of the two hours and gone 'Well I think I made the quota'. But still being told it too her face made it feel all the more real, like it actually mattered. Just then a hand fell on her shoulder and with a start Lucy looked up to the smiling face of Makino ''Good job Lucy'' she wisped, voice as warm as a summer day.
Lucy smiled back a little bit. Even though she still didn't like being here, it seemed as if life was going to change again, but unlike every other time it seemed to gift her a win. Life seemed on the up, and no matter how much she wanted to stay in Foosha, it would always be waiting for her if she ever needed to get away.
Life however seemed to realize that it had been to kind and so threw another curve ball, one that Lucy didn't know if it was bad or good.
''Oy! What the hell are you all doing out here! Where's my supper?'' Called out a voice from the under-bush to the side. Lucy was left grasping at straws about what had happened until Ace walked out the under-bush in all his glory. The son of the pirate king was carrying a huge carcass of what looked to be the largest crocodile Lucy had ever seen.
And right there helping him drag it was none other than Sabo, top hat and all.
Well that was a chore and a half, though now it's done. We can finally move on from this silly little side plot I created to the actual arc. Though being serious this was to set up a mechanic that would drive the plot later on in this Arc so it was necessary. It just took too bloody long. Well next time it will be different see you then. Bye. Bye.