Lulled awake by the sound of hushed waves lapping against a boat had Whip groaning as he stretched, satisfied with the loud cracking sound his back made. That was until a searing pain took hold of his chest, rendering him motionless as he fought to catch his breath. Taking in his current surroundings, Whip came to realise he was in a bedroom of sorts, clothes messily strewn across the floor and bloodied gauze scattered carelessly over the night stand. A soft snore brought his attention to the floor, a girl sleeping soundly amongst the chaos, her head tucked under her arm leaving only an abundance of red hair visible.

'What the hell is going on?' He thought, trying his hardest to recollect the previous day. Finding his attempt futile, Whip grazed his hand lightly over the aching pain in his chest. What his calloused finger tips found brought him abruptly – and painfully – into a seated position, wincing as he threw back the blanket that covered him. A gruesome, jagged gash ran the length of his torso, starting at his right shoulder, the painful wound ended just above his right hip towards his back. He noted that it had been stitched, not very well, and he doubted the standard of hygiene considering the room he'd woken in, but he appreciated it nonetheless. The rest of his body carried heavy purple bruising, scattered randomly over his legs, arms, chest and he was sure his back too.

The girl on the floor stirred, hurling her arm from her face as she opened her eyes groggily and slapped her lips together. Her hand felt over the night stand, knocking the used medical equipment on the floor. Whip watched her intently. Why didn't she just get up? She was obviously reaching for the water, groaning as she strained her small fingers managing to only lightly knock the glass. It was just out of reach. Exasperated, Whip discreetly nudged the glass into her hand as he rolled his eyes.

"Yes!" She snatched the glass away, bringing it to her lips, guzzling it dry of liquid. In her befuddled state Whip had gone completely unnoticed as she sighed loudly, dropping herself back onto a pillow.

"Morning." He greeted casually.

"Morning." The red head hummed. A few seconds passed and her eyes sprung open, realisation setting in. "You're awake." She stated obviously, scrambling to the side of the bed, wading through the clutter that, quite frankly, made Whip squirm.

"I'm awake." He confirmed, a little amused by her dizziness. Without permission she heaved his large arm into the air to inspect the wound he assumed she had closed, triumph evident in her chestnut eyes as she ran her fingers over the his tarnished flesh. "Sorry!" She smiled apologetically as Whip hissed between clenched teeth.

"No worries." He waved away her concern before continuing. "So, you got a name Red?"

"Ko. Akiko to my mother."

"Whip." He held out a large hand that she gripped with her tiny one. He was impressed by the firmness of her shake given the size of her.

"Whip?" She questioned, amusement dancing across her face as she visibly forced back a laugh.

"Whip." He asserted. Shrugging one shoulder, Ko turned her attention to the room behind her and started stuffing all that littered the floor into a paper bag. Her clothes, she threw into a the small closet and forced the door shut, not bothering to hang them.

Feeling a little awkward, Whip averted his gaze as she whizzed around the room, an oversized shirt hanging loosely from her shoulder, underwear bunched to one side revealing more of her than he desired. Not that he didn't appreciate a womanly figure such as hers but there was nowhere for him to hide his appreciation. The blanket draped over him was thin and the pillow on the floor was out of his reach. Ko seemed completely unfazed by her vulnerable state as she snapped her fingers in front of his face, grabbing his attention.

"Coffee?"

"Sure. Food?"

"Bacon." She nodded, skipping through the door. "Don't move Whip, you've been out for two days."

Not even ten minutes had passed before a whirlwind of red blew the door open. Ko entered the room, stumbling as she struggled to balance two plates of food and two cups of coffee, followed by a small black cat that appeared to be glowering. Whip caught her elbow before she could hit the floor not wanting his food to be taken down with her.

"Thanks." She chimed, awkwardly pulling herself up to sit on the bedside. Taking the plate she offered, Whip silently thanked whatever god was listening and greedily dug in. Observing Ko quietly he was unsurprised to see her scoff at the food as he did, slurping unattractively around her coffee cup. This woman was undoubtedly the most ungraceful person he had ever met. They finished eating in silence, the black cat still scowling in the corner of the small room.

"Is your cat defective?"

"Actually," Ko replied around her last bite of bacon, "yes but not in the way you think." Whip cocked his brow, curious as to what she meant but before he could ask, Ko was barking orders at her cat. "Nell, grow." The two humans sat in bemused silence as the feline cleaned itself in the corner, not seeming to understand Ko at all.

'Fuck, she's crazy' Whip told himself, eyes never leaving the animal in the room, hoping to be proved wrong. Something was suddenly soaring through the air, a shoe it seemed aimed directly at the cats head as Whip's jaw hung open. He couldn't believe she'd just thrown a shoe at a poor defenseless cat.

"Hey, you can't just do tha –" Whip began, voice raised and ready to defend the tiny animal. His sentence ended abruptly as he stuttered around words he couldn't form. That tiny defenseless cat had just tripled in size, hissing at the impact of the footwear. He was lost for words.

"Cool right?" Ko rose her eye brows, pride slapping a colossal grin across her face.

Eyes rolling back into his head, Whip groaned, annoyed at the constant scratching that echoed through the small bathroom. The defective cat was relentless in her attempts to join him in the shower. It seemed she'd taken a particular liking to him after he had scolded Ko for hurling a shoe at the animal. After getting over his initial shock of course. He'd consider throwing his own shoe at the cat if she continued to harass him, or he would if he had any shoes.

Ko had briefly explained that in a state of unrelenting panic she had ripped his shirt clean in half instead of using the little common sense she appeared to have, and lifting it to stitch him up. She had also knocked his shoes overboard while dragging him below deck. He had only a pair of blue and white trousers to his name, blue and white because Ko had tried to bleach the blood from them. Not able to repress it, Whip laughed to himself. This girl was incredulous.

Reluctantly he shut the water off, stepping out if the blissful heat and into the surprisingly cold air of the room. He snatched up the too small towel that Ko had left him and hesitantly stepped toward the mirror, taking a deep breath before wiping it clean of condensation. He'd taken a moment earlier to thoroughly inspect his wound and he didn't much want to look at it again. It wasn't a vanity thing, no damaged ego, but he was ever so slightly squeamish, and so he decided to avoid it until it had healed.

"Old man, come get your lunch!" Annoyed by his new nickname, Whip pulled his pale blue hair into a lazy bun, splashed his face with water and exited the bathroom, scowl firmly in place.

"One, I'm twenty-six years young. Two," Whips words fell flat as he noticed the lack of food "where the hell is lunch? " He asked looking around as if she may have hidden it somewhere.

"Here." Ko replied pushing a bottle of sake into his hand. Confused, Whip looked at her, tendrils of hair falling loose as he cocked his head "it's this or porridge oats until we dock at the next island."

"And when is that?"

"Before dark I'd say." She settled herself into one of two chairs set around a small circular table, patting the one next to her, she motioned him to sit. Deciding it was better than nothing, Whip dug into his alcoholic meal and joined Ko at the table. Nell had taken possession of his lap immediately, pushing her self into him as he stroked her gently. Neither of them spoke but it wasn't uncomfortable. Whip had a feeling there was very little that did make her uncomfortable.

"So, kiddo what are you doing out here? Marines, pirates, or deep personal journey?" Whip questioned, curious about the woman who had saved his life. Maybe he could pay her back one day if he knew her a little better. Thoughtfully, Ko sipped her drink before answering.

"Grandpa is a marine, dad's a pirate, I'm off on a deep personal path to self discovery and hoping to find my long lost father in the process." She answered, putting dramatic emphasis on the last part. Taken aback, Whip almost dropped his drink. Ko laughed quietly as she watched him fumble, leaning forward to rest her elbows in her knees.

"You're lying." He accused.

"Afraid not."

"Why are you telling me this? I could be anyone." Whip rose his voice a little more than he'd meant to, annoyed at her sheer stupidity and willingness to trust.

"If you meant me any harm you'd have done it by now," She shrugged "Plus, I'm happy with the knowledge that if anyone did they'd have my grandpa and my dad to contend with." Smugness took center place on her face as Whip wondered who these relatives could possibly be.

"So? Who are they?" He pressed fully intrigued by the odd family dynamic.

"That I can't tell you. And I won't. Anyway, what about you? Aren't you a little old to be playing pirate?"

"I'm not playing pirate I am a pirate!" He retorted through clenched teeth. "Last thing I remember is being in the new world," He paused, shoulders slumped as he looked down at the kitten in his lap," I had a crew but… I lost them. All of them." Whip drew in a shaky breath, as he tried to banish the memories that telling this story awaked. He didn't want to relive it. He wouldn't.

"I'm sorry." Whip glanced over at the uncharacteristic tone of her voice. That was the first time he'd heard even a shred of seriousness in her from her, and as he looked closer he could see reflected in her eyes the same pain he bore. Sighing heavily, Ko threw her head back, a sea of red blowing free behind her. "I lost my brother eight years ago."

"Did he give you that?" Whip wondered aloud, nodding towards the silver chain that she was twirling between her fingers.

"He did." She answered, voice barely a whisper. Whip offered her a comforting smile, nodding in understanding.

They continued their unconventional lunch in silence, comfortable in one another's company. Whip watched her, curiosity begging to get the better of him. She was starting to look familiar, like he had met her before but he couldn't have. He'd been sailing the New World for the last two years, Ko had only set off two days ago. She gave off an aura that he couldn't mistake, he'd felt I before only stronger. Her hair, that vibrant shade of red and the shape of her eyes were all known to him.

'Who are you Akiko?'