Warning: There is a graphic depiction of violence/ torture in the last section of this chapter. A reminder that this fic is going to be extremely dark and cruel, and very bad things are going to happen to a lot of characters throughout.
Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or the characters, they belong to Eiichiro Oda.
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The weeks passed quickly in Kid's village. With every day she spent among his men and people, falling into their pace and routines, Nami grew more comfortable there. It wasn't quite the same as her home had been, but she was safe for the time being and among free people who were happy with their lives. She hesitated to call Kid and his men friends, but they were the closest she had to anything of the sort, and she had come to enjoy their companionship during the day as she worked.
Gunda had certainly become a friend to her as the older woman stayed by her side most waking hours of the day. She had spent some nights in her room, as well, when Nami found herself unable to sleep. They worked at her dresses those nights and whispered about the latest gossip in the village, all while they listened to Kid snore in the room beside her. He had grown more at ease with her in his hall, too. He trusted her to stay until she had no choice but to run, though he still peeked in on her at night before they went to bed to see that she settled in properly. The nights she stayed awake with Gunda only seemed to help quell his worries. He slept with ease knowing she had a loyal shieldmaiden in her company to see she didn't take off into the night.
There were only two nights that he had found his way into her room and remained until dawn. Her nightmares had abated over the weeks, but every now and then she would be assaulted with disjointed images of her wolf guardian and the giant meant to kill him. Some nights she awoke with a start in the pitch dark of her room, alone and gasping for breath. She lit a candle to chase off the shadows of her dream and spent the rest of the night distracting herself with Kid's heraldry.
But there were two nights she didn't wake so easily as the dreams dragged her under. Those nights were the worst she had since she had been wandering alone. She could feel the wet soil beneath her fingertips as she knelt beside the dying wolf. She could smell the noxious breath of the giant towering over her, preparing to snatch her away. She wanted to wake as her throat tightened and she struggled to breathe through every gut wrenching sob, but then the giant grabbed her by the neck and she found herself trapped with no hope of escape.
Those two nights she woke with a strangled sob when Kid shook her, the man snarling loudly above her, demanding she snap out of it. The first time he did that, she nearly screamed and he had to cover her mouth to keep her silent. He commanded her to breathe in deep as she stared up at his rusty brown eyes, the only part of him that she could see in the darkness. Once she calmed and relaxed beneath him, he shifted to lay down beside her with a sharp order that she go back to sleep. The first time he did that she tried to tell him to leave, that she could sleep on her own, that it had been nothing but a nightmare. He growled for her to shut up and wound his arm around her, telling her that she had no choice in the matter.
He also agreed to hand over another purse filled with gold coins, so she decided it wouldn't hurt to let him stay. The weight of his arm over her shoulders grounded her. The warmth of his body at her back chased away the chill that set into her bones in the dream. He reminded her that he was still alive, that she wasn't alone, and that she would find a way to change his fate, no matter what it took to do so.
Those nights she fell back to sleep without any struggle and was met with a comforting darkness devoid of haunting dreams.
By the middle of the third week, Nami was content, busy enough most days that she was able to put her fears to the back of her mind. With summer rapidly approaching, the weather had grown warm, the days long, and Nami felt her spirits lift as the village prepared for the upcoming voyages. She was looking forward to the chance to see new lands, a dream she had long held finally coming to fruition.
She only wished Nojiko and Genzo could see it for themselves.
She tried not to think too much of them, though they were always present at the back of her mind and sometimes her worries visited her in her dreams. She didn't have to wonder how they were doing. She knew well enough what they would face from Arlong the longer she was away. She could only hope that they were still alive. As long as they survived and struggled on, she would find a way back to them and free them like she had always planned to do.
That day she found herself thinking of Nojiko even more than normal. A deeper worry had crept along her spine as she sat on the porch of Kid's hall with the old lady Ingrid at her side. Gunda stood tall on the ground, at ease in the safety of the village save for the sword she was now allowed to carry on her hip. They were watching the children play in the yard with Nami's other guards for the day who turned their childish swordplay into a training game. The boys and girls chased after the young Finn as he darted among the nearby houses, laughing as he smacked away every strike of a blunted sword.
Finn was only sixteen, barely even a man, and he had only seen real battle a handful of times during the previous summer's raids. His youthful face didn't bear the evidence of war like most of Kid's men, and his gaze still held a glimmer of innocence that made him popular with the village girls. His ash brown hair was kept in a short, curly mop that only added to his boyish appearance. Over the weeks, Nami had learned that the man was a charmer, adept with sweet words that easily fooled a number of the girls. Not so much Nami, but she let him believe otherwise as she took advantage of his willingness to please. And he was sweet, she didn't want to ruin his fun.
Hróarr, a man twice the jarl's age, stood scowling in front of the hall as he leaned against a spear. Blue-black hair peppered with grey was pulled back in a tight tail, revealing the sharp widow's peak of his hairline. A thick beard greying faster than his hair was always kept neatly combed with a slender tuft tied into a braid beneath his chin. It hid his sea-weathered face, the deep wrinkles and hollow eyes that gave away his age. He appeared stern and unamused with the game, but as soon as Finn was in reach, he angled his spear out and tripped the teenager into the dirt. He acted as though nothing was amiss as the children tackled the other warrior with shrieks of victory, only kept from injuring the man for real when Gunda flew in to scatter the kids with a wave of her hands.
The older warrior had lost his farmlands to the previous jarl, and after Kid seized control, he chose to remain in the village as one of Kid's men. His wife had left him when he lost his land and took the children with her. He had nothing left, so dedicated himself to battling at Kid's side, even though Kid offered to return some of his lands to him. He was quiet, which lent to his serious demeanor, but he typically warmed up to the kids with ease, and had been the one to train Finn when he took up the sword. Nami suspected the teen had become a son to him over the last few years, just as all of Kid's men had come to be family to one another.
Nami could relate to that sentiment, even if the reminder of her relationship with Bellemere and Genzo brought a pang of remorse to her heart.
Ingrid's granddaughter and a girl a few years older than her had been peacefully sewing dresses for a doll Nami had made them when the boys descended, looking for a new game to play with the other at an end. Nami scowled as one of them took the doll and ran off with it, threatening to toss it into the river as a poor offering to the gods. She was prepared to chase him down herself, but paused when the girls ran after him instead. She stifled a laugh when they jumped on his back and forced him to the ground. They won back their doll after a flurry of hits to the boy's head and didn't stop until he was sobbing for mercy.
The sight reminded her of the days she and Nojiko would get into fights with the village boys. Bellemere scolded them for it until they told her they only got into a fight because the boys were insulting their mother. The boys were already a sobbing mess after Nami and Nojiko were done with them, but after Bellemere gave them a few more hard knocks on the head, they learned to leave them be most of the time.
A lot of those boys had died over the years after Arlong came. That was what happened when anyone thought to rise up against the new jarl.
She didn't think Arlong would kill Nojiko, at least not yet. Her sister was a priceless hostage to leverage for Nami's return. If he killed her, then she had nothing else tying her to the village except for Genzo, and the former jarl would never forgive her if she went back for him. Nami would have no reason to return if Nojiko was gone, and Arlong was smart enough to know that.
But while her sister surely lived still, there was no doubt that her conditions would be horrible, far worse than anything they had endured over the last eight years.
She pushed aside her worries as best she could to smile at the two girls sauntering back to the porch, their heads held high with pride. Nami smiled and gestured for them to bring the doll over so she could see if it was damaged. The other boys had scampered off, unwilling to test the girls' wrath after seeing their friend fall so easily to them. The other boy was picked up by the arm by Hróarr who wasted no time in swiftly cuffing the sobbing child on the back of the head before lecturing him on his behavior toward the girls. He shoved the boy toward Gunda to have him cleaned up, the boy's lip bleeding from a gash that came from his fall, and then went back to his position in front of the hall, leaning his weight on his spear to watch over the newest game Finn had started with the children still wanting to play with the warriors.
This time it was actual sword fighting lessons with their blunted weapons.
Nami was brushing the dirt from the doll when she spotted Killer jog through the village. He usually stopped by the hall throughout the day to check on her – Kid's orders. She assumed it was the same that day, though his haste in reaching them had her curious.
"Why the rush?" she asked once he reached the porch to greet them. Killer patted the girls on the head as they sat in front of her, and gave Nami a warm smile.
"Kid sent me. He wants everyone at the docks and shoreline," he explained.
"Everyone?" she asked as she handed the doll back to the girls.
Killer nodded and glanced toward the hall as Gunda returned with the boy. He held a bloodstained rag to his lip as he sniffled back a few more tears. He shot a sneer at the girls as he leaped off the porch, and was smacked on the back of the head by the shaft of Hróarr's spear a second later for it.
"What happened there?" Killer asked as he watched the boy slump off to sit by himself, sulking over his day's injuries.
"He took their doll. They beat him up," Nami explained with a laugh.
"Someday that boy will learn not to anger a woman," Ingrid said sharply. "If he doesn't before he's married, his wife will surely correct that."
Killer snorted in amusement and gestured toward the river. "We should head over. Kid won't be happy if his audience isn't present."
"Why does he want an audience, anyway?" Nami asked as she picked herself up and helped Ingrid stand, Gunda handing the old woman a gnarled piece of wood that acted as her cane. "What is he up to?"
"You'll see," Killer grunted as he waved at Finn and the other children. "Go to the docks. Jarl's orders," he called to them.
The children's faces lit up with excitement, as did Finn's. The kids ran off shouting their glee, ensuring that the rest of the village heard of the jarl's orders if they hadn't already. Finn looked like he wanted to take off with them, but hung back with his eager grin. He had his own orders to follow. He couldn't leave Nami, even if she had plenty of guards to watch over her.
"Boy, come help an old lady to the river," Ingrid called to him.
Finn skipped over, grinning happily as he took her free arm in his to help keep her steady while she hobbled through the village. Within her home she moved with more ease, but out in the streets she found it harder and harder to walk for long distances.
"I don't see an old lady here," Finn chirped. "Just many beautiful young women."
Ingrid smacked him on the head with her cane and cackled at his pained yelp. "Flattery will get you nowhere with me, boy. It might work on the young ones, but you can't fool me."
Nami laughed as she fell in step with Killer, winding her arm through his. "I get the feeling that everyone knows what's going on but me," she teased.
"That's because they do," Killer chuckled.
"I don't even get a hint?" she asked.
Killer merely smirked and tugged her along. She let out a feigned huff of annoyance, but didn't press him further. If he meant this to be a surprise for her, then she'd play along.
The docks and beach along the river were crowded, every villager heeding Kid's orders without fail. Children scampered among the legs of adults, squeezing in wherever they could. A few found their parents and were lifted up to see above the crowds - those kids waved down at their friends to rub in their luck at getting a better spot. Killer led their group over to the docks, nudging aside other spectators until a path opened in front of him. Nami glanced back to see the others following. She snickered when she caught Hróarr at the back of their group, scowling at everyone he passed as Ingrid's granddaughter and her friend sat on each of his shoulders, clinging to his head to keep their perch.
At the end of the long wooden dock Killer had picked for them, Nami spotted Heat waiting at the end with a few of Kid's other men. The healer held a leather drum that he handed over to Killer once they reached him. Killer left her to sit up on the piling at the end of the dock where some of the other men sat with their feet dangling into the water. Two of them had drums while a third held a large brown and white horn.
As she maneuvered to stand at the end, Heat helping to steady her near the edge, Nami noticed that even the fishermen had pulled in their nets. The few that went out to the deeper waters of the fjord had rowed their ships in close to sit at the mouth of the river, and stood on their decks watching upstream.
The dock had been claimed by most of Kid's men, the few that couldn't fit took to the shallow water around them. She saw Halle standing tall out in the gentle current of the river and waved at the man as he waded closer. Her favorite lyre player grinned behind his trim beard. His sandy brown hair, flecked with bits of grey around his temples despite barely being into his thirties, was soaking wet, and he went without his tunic in the water. Many of Kid's men had shed their tops as they waded in the water, and Nami noticed why Halle's hair was wet as she watched one of Kid's men tackle another into the water. The men had been playing as they waited for everyone to take up their spots.
Nami knelt down once Halle was close and raised an eyebrow at the man as he pulled himself up to rest his torso on the dock beside her.
"No one's telling me anything," she complained. "What's going on?"
His grin widened. "You'll see."
She huffed as he shoved away from the dock with a short laugh and waded back out to his friends. She didn't have to wait much longer to find out for herself. Killer and the other drummers had begun to pound out a steady beat that echoed off the rolling hills around the mouth of the river and fjord. Nami stood and looked up the river where everyone's attention seemed to be. She tried to lean out so she could peer around a tree-lined bend in the river when she thought she heard a short blast of a horn, but nearly fell in when their own horn player blew out a long note in reply, surprising her with the sound. Heat snagged her by the wrist to pull her away from the edge. She glanced up to smile her thanks sheepishly, and he merely regarded her with a stoic frown and nod.
"Patience," he muttered.
The first to cheer were the fishermen lined up on the far shore. They had the better vantage of the river upstream. As they began to beat their hands and oars on the wales of their smaller boats, Killer and the drummers increased their own beat, pounding louder as the horn wailed in answer of another call.
She let out a short laugh when she finally caught sight of a carved, serpentine figurehead on the prow of the ship as it rounded the bend. Kid had finished his newest ship and was launching it for everyone to see.
Her laughter caught in her throat as more of the longship came into view, and the initial cheers from the villagers turned into a roar of approval. She knew by the carvings of the figurehead that it was no average skeid, but even the few elaborate drekkar she had seen in her childhood paled in comparison to Kid's newest addition to his fleet.
She gaped as she counted out the oars, at least forty of them. The ship could easily carry eighty men. A true warship, one that was carved to look like a great sea serpent rising from the water. Or more like a beastly dragon come to devour their enemies.
With a beastly jarl at its command.
Kid stood proudly at the steering oar of his ship, his wide grin easily spotted. She heard his barking laughter echo with the crowd, and then he raised his horn to his lips to give another long blast that the men on the docks immediately answered. The men who had been helping him build the ship were at the oars, guiding it along the river and slowing it as they reached the open dock it would moor at - the very dock she stood on. As it came closer, the men in the river sent up flurries of water to splash their friends in celebration. A few of the oarsmen splashed back with their oars until their friends snagged them and used them as leverage to climb from the water, boarding their new ship.
Nami stepped back to allow the men to toss ropes at the ship as Kid steered it in close. She gaped in awe as she took in the elaborate knotwork decorating the wale and prow, carvings of wolves bearing their fangs sprinkled throughout the knots.
The men moved aside once the ship was secured to the dock and brought her in to take a closer look. Kid sauntered toward her, his chest puffed out and head held high. The reaction to his latest ship obviously made his pride swell, he seemed especially pleased with her awestruck look.
"Impressed?" he asked as he stepped up to balance on the side of the ship, a hand on the dock's piling to keep himself steady.
"It's… big," Nami said, trying to find the words to describe her thoughts.
Kid barked with laughter as he held out his hand for her to take. He pulled her onto the ship, holding onto her hand as she jumped onto the sunken deck of the ship.
"It's beautiful," she added as she let go of him to lean over the side and inspect the carvings better. "Who carved these?"
"Yours truly," Kid said, preening as she gaped up at him again. He sat down on the wale beside her and watched as she turned to look over the interior of the ship. His whole attention was on her, even as some of the more curious villagers and children came to see the ship up close. "It's my biggest ship," he explained, "so you're not wrong in that. Should be able to carry over eighty men, plus supplies and plunder." He slapped his hand on the side of the ship. "She's not as agile as my smaller ships, but she'll still be as fast. And ought to hold up in a storm without a problem."
Nami silently nodded her agreement. The framing of the ship looked sturdy, and the rigging seemed strong when she tested a line. The sail was new, made of vertical strips of red and yellow fabric. It fluttered loose in the afternoon breeze, and she could tell the thralls did a good job in keeping their seams strong so it would hold in the harsh winds of the open sea.
"I've even been thinking of a name for her," Kid said, drawing her attention back to him as he came over to lean against the ropes she had been inspecting.
"Have you?" she asked, laughing at the excitement brightening his eyes.
Kid nodded as he swayed lightly, a ripple of the river's current rocking the ship. "She's going to be my fleet's figurehead. The lead ship." He grasped onto a rope high above his head, looking up as he held tight when another wave rocked them. "She'll strike terror into the hearts of my enemies."
Nami laughed quietly. Outwardly he seemed calm, but she could see his happiness in his smile and feel his exhilaration radiate off his tense frame.
"And the name to suit such a ship?" she prompted.
Kid chuckled and leaned down to whisper in her ear. "The Giant's Nightmare." Her eyes went wide at the name. She could easily guess where it came from. "If I didn't mean to kill him, this ship will haunt your giant's worst dreams and make him fear that my ghost will come for him, drag him to Hel where he belongs. But, as I said, if I die, I'm taking the bastard with me."
She was too stunned to speak as he pulled away. His confidence had her hoping that he would succeed in all he said, as well as hope that she could succeed at what her ancestor claimed they could do. She snapped out of her shock when his hand came down to pat her on the head and rest there when she tilted her head back to gaze up at his cocky smile.
"You approve?" he asked. She nodded dumbly, and Kid chuckled as he gave her head another pat. "Good," he said and let his arm fall to drape over her shoulders. "You'll be riding in this ship when we go to Álasund in three days. I want to see how good a navigator you really are."
"Wait… Three days? I thought we had at least another week?"
"I finished the ship ahead of schedule, the other skeids I mean to take to England are ready, and the men have the knarrs mostly loaded up. I'd rather not waste any more time getting that cargo out and get on the raid. That going to be a problem?"
She scowled in thought. "Your flags are mostly done. Since the thralls are done with the sails, I can use a few to help with the last of them."
"I only need one for this ship and the two smaller skeids, just worry about packing a chest and help Killer make sure we got all the supplies we need."
Her earlier worries drifted to the back of her mind again as she let excitement wash over her. She might not be able to sail with the men to Britain, but she still looked forward to getting away from the village for few weeks. She would have a chance to see part of a world she hadn't before. It also put more distance between her and Arlong, but she didn't want to think about him.
"And you'll let me navigate?" she asked cheerfully, smiling up at Kid.
"Might as well." He shrugged while trying not to grin teasingly. It broke when he chuckled. "That story you told me about your old jarl made me curious to see just how much you know. Might give me another clue to where your clan came from."
"You're still trying to figure that out?"
He hummed idly. "I'm curious by nature."
"Well, if I have my way, you'll be guessing at it forever," she teased, patting him on the chest. She pulled away and turned to get back on the dock. She had a trip to prepare for and not a lot of time.
She froze just as she stepped up on the side of the ship when two hands landed solidly on her hips.
"Where do you think you're going? We're not done celebrating the new ship," Kid chuckled as his hold tighten.
"Kid? What are you…?" Her question was cut off with a shriek as he lifted her and held her above his head. "Kid," she screamed in warning as he turned toward the other side of the ship where his men in the water still splashed and played around. "Don't you dare!"
His men saw what the jarl was doing and spread out while cheering him on. She thrashed in a vain hope of escape, but his hold was too tight. She screamed at the top of her lungs when he sent her flying into the river, just barely cutting it off before she swallowed a lungful of water. She came up spluttering and growled as she turned to the man cackling loudly from the deck of the ship.
"You jerk," she screamed at him. "I expect another purse of gold for this!"
Kid only continued to laugh, his head back as he clutched his belly with mirth. The laugh didn't end until Killer slipped behind him. It was Nami's turn to shriek with laughter as she watched Killer surprise Kid and shove him overboard. Kid came up snarling curses before he had to duck as Killer plunged into the water beside him, curling into a tight ball to ensure Kid was splashed with his entrance.
Before they knew it, the whole crew was in the water, along with most of the village. The day came to a screeching halt as everyone set aside their chores in favor of playing in the cool river.
For the first time in years, Nami found herself having fun.
Kid was exhausted by the time he and the others managed to drag themselves out of the water, but he couldn't stop grinning. Even after Nami tried to drown him for throwing her in the river, his good mood couldn't be shaken. Seeing Nami laugh and actually enjoy herself with his men certainly helped.
She had been falling into melancholy less and less over the weeks, though there had been days he caught her staring off in the distance, unfailingly toward the southeast, the direction of her home and all the people she had left behind. Between everyone at the hall and within the village, those moments were broken with ease as someone found a way to distract her. The longer she was allowed to think about the man that would surely hunt her down eventually, the more chance there was that she would try to run away.
The happier she was there, the less likely she was to vanish.
Her nightmares still bothered him, but as far as he could tell they had become less frequent. There were nights he stirred awake to see candlelight flickering from her room, and he guessed those nights were restless but not bad enough to wake him. Normally the next night she would have Gunda in her room, staying up late to whisper with the woman as she put off sleep as long as she could. The shieldmaiden would remain the whole night through, giving Nami the company and security she needed to eventually fall asleep.
The nights she woke him with her thrashing and whimpering worried him most. He knew she dreamed of his death those nights, but there was nothing he could do to take those away. She would continue to have them until his fate caught up with him. In the meantime, all he could do was protect her from her own mind. He had noticed how soundly she slept in his arms when they road to the village. He had peeked at her a number of times during that ride to check that she was still breathing and always found her peaceful in sleep. She even wore a soft smile, a stark contrast to the horror etched on her face at the height of her visions. So when the nightmares came back, he took the risk of joining her in bed again to see if his presence would keep the dreams at bay.
He knew it worked the first morning when she didn't wake up screaming or pummeling him with a pillow. She still charged him a fine, but she didn't try to kill him, and she didn't argue with him about it as much the second time it happened.
He knew that neither of them should get too accustomed to the routine, for more reasons than just the gossip that would spread if anyone other than Killer knew about it. He didn't mind sharing a bed with her, though he hated being woken up beforehand, but a day would come when he wouldn't be there to shield her from her prophetic nightmares. She would have to rely on someone else to protect her dreams, or suffer without.
He hoped that as her magic broke free of its bonds, she would learn to control it so it wouldn't plague her sleep with nightmares, then he wouldn't have anything to worry about after he was gone.
That night, as the sun slowly began to set, they all made their way back to his hall with their spirits high. He doubted that Nami would have any trouble sleeping that night after they played for so long in the river, but her nightmares were hard to predict. With her cheerful laugh as Halle took to tousling her sopping wet hair on the way inside, and the playful banter she leveled on the rest, he couldn't see any shadows in her mind potentially ruining her night, and he wanted it to stay that way.
The thralls had worked on supper as they all had their fun, so as soon as they returned, they were assaulted with the pleasant scents of their dinners waiting for them. His men immediately took up their seats, still excitedly shoving and jostling one another as they fought over chairs and benches. Gunda set about helping serve while Nami headed to her room in the back, waving an apology because she wanted to change out of her wet dress.
Kid silently followed after her.
He went to his own room to change, as well, dumping water out of his boots to drench the furs on the floor. He listened to the rustling on the other side of the curtain as Nami shed her dress, and snorted when he heard a wet plop of fabric coupled with a disgruntled sigh.
"You could have ruined my dress," she called over to him, prompting him to chuckle as he pulled off his tunic.
"Your other dress mostly survived a swim in the Skaggerak. I doubt a few hours in the river did any harm to your newest one," he called back with another laugh, his wet trousers kicked into a corner. "And you can always use the excuse to make another one."
She snorted a rather unladylike laugh of her own. "I don't need the excuse. I'm already working on a new one."
"That green thing I saw you working on last night?" he asked while slipping into a new pair of yellow trousers.
Nami hummed an affirmative as he listened to more fabric rustle. There was a creak from her room that he knew came from her bed. "If you ever throw me in the river while I'm wearing that one, I'll definitely drown you."
He dared to peek through the curtains so she could see his devious smile. She was wrapped up in a linen sheet, a comb in hand as she tried to work out a tangled knot in her hair. When she noticed him watching, she shot him a glare but didn't scream for him to give her privacy, so he pushed the curtains aside to come into her room. He headed straight to the table she kept all her projects and picked out the green dress she had been working on.
"It doesn't look any different from your other dresses. What makes this one special?" he asked, eyeing her work to see if anything stood out. It looked like an average wool apron dress to him.
"I'm not even close to completing it," she huffed. "I mean to give it more stitching and trim, something more eye catching for ceremonies and festivals."
He hummed thoughtfully and then shrugged as he set the dress aside.
"Don't forget the gold you owe me," she reminded while she moved on to comb out another knot.
"You're really fining me for throwing you in the river? I didn't even do anything indecent," he said as he went back into his room to find a few coins to appease her with. It hadn't taken long for him to figure out that gold and silver made Nami happy, and a happy Nami didn't argue with him as much.
"It's the principle of the matter. You should be treating me with respect," she said.
He came back into her room and glowered at her arrogant tone. "Why? Because you're a special little prophetess the gods have decided I have to protect?" he asked, going over to her and tousling her hair even more. She shrieked as he ruined her work at combing out the tangles and shot him a heavy glare. He merely laughed and sat on the bed beside her, holding out two gold coins that she quickly snatched for herself. She added them to the purse she kept tucked inside the frame of her bed. It was getting rather fat with all the fines she had leveled against him, and he suspected she was saving every piece of it for the day she might have to run again.
"As far as I'm concerned, I respect you plenty," he said with a groan, flopping back in her bed to stretch. Fatigue began to set into his muscles after the activity of the afternoon, and he swore her bed was more comfortable than his. Maybe that was why he liked sleeping in there so much.
"How so?" she asked, glancing at him as she set about combing her hair again.
"You have your own room, your own bed. I humor your lousy fines even though I think they're unfair. I provide you with anything you need or want. And I haven't tried to sell you back to your village," he listed. "I'm also taking you with us to Álasund, possibly even to Britain if you ask nice enough." He grinned cheekily when she huffed at him. "I doubt any other jarl would be so hospitable to you, at least given the circumstances of our meeting."
"You still didn't need to throw me in the river," she snapped.
He chuckled and nudged her in the side. "You looked like you had fun, though." She puffed her cheeks, only making him laugh harder as he reached up to pinch one. "Cute. I'm definitely going to throw you into the river again next chance I get."
She growled, smacking his hand away, but he swore he caught the faintest hint of a smile. He was right. She had fun with them that day.
Kid forced himself up with another long groan. If he laid there any longer, he might fall asleep in there and he doubted Nami would be willing to share the bed without a nightmare to use as an excuse.
"Hurry up and get dressed, woman," he grunted, ruffling her hair one last time. "You can comb your hair later. Don't get out to the hall soon and the guys are liable to eat your share of supper."
"Gunda will save me a plate," she said haughtily and stuck her tongue out at him.
"Then I'll find it and eat it myself," he chuckled back. "I want your company at supper so we can talk about the voyage. If you aren't dressed when I'm done, then I'll drag you out there in that sheet and nothing else."
She threw her comb at his head. He just barely ducked behind the curtain before it struck him.
"Just hurry up," he ordered, and then went about finding a new tunic as he chuckled at her irritated grumbling in the other room.
By the time he was done redressing, he found Nami still slipping into her clean yellow dress.
"Close enough," he said.
She had barely gotten the dress over her head when he grabbed her by the waist and hauled her over his shoulder. He cackled as she struggled in his hold and headed out to the main room.
"I just need my brooches," she shrieked. "Put me down."
"I warned you," he teased. "You weren't fast enough."
She gave up halfway there and fell limp with a disgruntled sigh.
"I hate you," she huffed.
"No you don't," he chuckled. "Not even a little bit."
She muttered, "I wish I did," behind his back, and he broke out in a smug grin. He squeezed her around the waist to let her know he heard. Nami released another annoyed sigh.
No matter how much she pretended otherwise, Kid knew Nami was happy there.
And he wouldn't admit it to her, but he was pretty happy, too. Even if he was going to die in the end, he wouldn't change the fate that let him meet her.
Tingstad
It had been nearly a month since Nami escaped. A month filled with an agonizing hope that the woman she called sister was safe. A month spent quietly beseeching the gods to watch over her, to not abandon her.
Nojiko knew nothing of the woman's fate, but her heart swore that Nami was still alive out there. In a better place, with better people. Maybe even happy. She didn't know if she would ever see her again. She wanted to hope that she would, but at the same time she feared it. For if she were to ever see Nami again, then that likely meant Arlong had found her, and that was the last thing Nojiko ever wanted to see.
She would suffer in bitter loneliness for as long as she had to if it meant Nami was far away and safe. If she died before ever seeing Nami again, then she would die a little happier for it.
After Arlong captured her, he tied her up in a desolate shack next to the pigpen. Her prison stunk of manure day and night, but after two weeks she hardly noticed it. The rope around her wrists and ankles had chaffed them until they were raw and bled, but she was finally becoming numb to that pain. Though her limbs were stiff from being bound so long that she doubted she would ever manage to escape on her own, even if she somehow got by her guards.
The worst was the cough that had developed over the last week. Two days of chilly rain had assaulted their village, and with a meager pile of wet straw as her bed and a ragged piece of cloth to act as a blanket, the damp and cold set into her bones. She hardly slept those nights, and she knew she was falling ill with a fever. She knew Arlong meant to keep her alive for as long as he could, but he didn't care how much she suffered. He'd intervene and bring her to a healer if she became critical.
Every day that passed, his men brought her a pitiful breakfast of oat porridge and water. At night they brought her some old bread that was too stale to chew, so she was forced to soften it in the water they gave her and choke it down that way.
No matter how hopeless and bleak her situation was, she would stay alive. For Nami. She wouldn't leave their realm until she was certain Nami would never have to fear Arlong again.
That morning she woke in her damp straw bed and hissed as she strained on weak arms to sit up. She blinked away the crust in her eyes to squint at the light peeking in through the slats of wood in the door. It was later than normal. She had slept too long, which was strange enough. Sleep had been so hard to come by with her cough, but apparently the fever was leaving her more fatigued than she thought. She was still surprised, though, since one of Arlong's men should have woken her when they brought her breakfast.
There wasn't a bowl to show that they had come at all, which left her curious but she was too tired to think long on it.
Shakily, she pushed herself to her feet to hop and hobble with her bindings to the small bucket Arlong had spared her to relieve herself in. With how little they fed her, she hardly needed it anymore.
She had just finished and was pushing down her skirts when she heard someone clomp through the dirt on their way to the shack. She moved back to her bed, collapsing onto the straw just as the door swung open to reveal Kuroobi – one of Arlong's closest brothers.
His massive frame was dressed in a blue tunic and dark brown trousers, and his long black hair was tied in a knot at the back of his head. A knife hung from his thick leather belt, the only weapon he normally bothered to carry around the village. It was all he ever needed when dealing with the occasional rebellion. He was strong enough to snap a grown man's neck with his bare hands, so he saw no reason to carry around his sword.
She wasn't sure what to make of the long leather whip hanging loose in his hand.
"Come on, woman," he grunted as he came toward her, grabbing her by the arm to yank her off the ground. His grip was bruising tight, though he hardly looked to put any effort into it, and it only grew tighter as she stumbled on her feet.
"Where are you taking me?" she demanded, thinking to struggle for a split second as he dragged her after him.
"Arlong wants a word with you," he answered gruffly.
Her stomach twisted into knots at the foreboding in those words. A month had gone by without Nami resurfacing, and now Arlong wanted to speak to her. That meant his patience was thin.
Kuroobi dragged her toward the jarl's hall. It was only a few paces away, but she felt as though she had walked the length of Svealand by the time he shoved her down into the mud at the base of the hall's porch. She gasped for air and breathed in mud. She rolled to her side, coughing and retching and trying to get one clean breath.
She vaguely heard Arlong slowly descend the steps to stand in front of her so she wasn't surprised when she felt his hand in her hair, pulling her up to sit on her knees. She winced at the sharp sting of her scalp from his grip, and bit back a cry of pain when she felt some hairs rip out. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of hearing her pain.
Once she was on her knees, she managed to glare up at their false jarl. She didn't back down at the scowl he wore. She wouldn't show him fear.
He shoved away from her and stood tall. On her knees, he looked even more like a giant than he already did, but she refused to cower to him as he slowly paced around the square.
"It's been a month, and my beloved Nami has yet to return to us," he called out.
Nojiko finally took notice of all the people congregating around the area. Arlong's men and villagers alike. The jarl's men all carried their swords and stood heads above the others. The villagers were tiny, meek, little better than rats as they nervously eyed the jarl and his men. They must have been gathered there to witness whatever Arlong planned to do.
"I have missed her terribly this past month," Arlong continued, and Nojiko's lips twisted into a sneer at those words. He didn't miss her, not really. He was just angry that she had defied him, that she was no longer in his possession. "All of my men have. They have been nothing but brothers to her, and yet she repays us by running away. But I feel hopeful that we will find her, and with that in mind, I'm feeling generous…"
He turned back to her with a wide grin. A shiver ran down her spine at that grin.
"I will give you all a chance to tell me what you know of Nami's whereabouts. Surely she and her sister must have shared their plans with one of you," Arlong announced. "If you tell me where you believe her to be, I will wave your taxes for two whole weeks."
Nojiko frowned as the villagers glanced around. Not one of them knew anything. Not one of them would ever willingly talk to Nami to begin with. They wanted her to run away, and any shred of kindness she received would only make her hesitate to leave. If she felt any hope that she might be able to save them, then she would stay and suffer through Arlong's intentions.
"They know nothing," Nojiko said, her voice coming out as a croaked whisper. She hadn't spoken more than a few words in weeks, and her cough had left her throat scratchy and sore. "You're wasting your time."
Arlong hummed as he slowly sauntered back to her. "None of them?" he mused and waved toward another of his men. She watched as Chew came forward, his gaunt face pursed with a frown that was framed with a thin blond beard to match the short cropping of his hair. He yanked on a black steel chain, and she watched as Genzo came falling into the mud in front of her. His head was shaved clean, even the mustache and trim beard he had been so proud of in his youth was gone, only making him appear that much older and frailer in his weathered rags. "Tell me, Jarl Genzo, do you know anything of their plans?"
Genzo found the strength to spit at Arlong's feet.
Arlong threw his head back as his laughter echoed over the somber village. Nojiko watched in horror as the giant's foot came down hard on Genzo's head, shoving him face first into the mud. Genzo thrashed and fought as best he could, but Arlong was stronger than him, even when Genzo was at full strength.
"Stop," Nojiko tried to yell, but her voice remained a harsh whisper. She cleared her throat and tried again, crying out until she felt her throat would tear with the effort. "Stop! He knows nothing!"
Arlong lifted his foot from the man's head and then kicked him in the ribs. Genzo rolled limply to his back, but Nojiko was relieved to see him drag in a desperate gasp. Arlong would keep him alive, too. Though his days were numbered.
"I doubt that," Arlong said, but turned away from Genzo to focus entirely on her. He crouched before her and grasped her face tight in his hand. When she tried to pull from his hold, he snapped her head forward and she froze as she felt a sharp pain lance down her neck. "But I admit we've treated him rather poorly over the years. He won't bat an eye at Kuroobi's knife if I told him to torture him. It'd only be one more scar to add to all the rest."
Nojiko glanced at the old jarl who was struggling to get back to his hands and knees. When Arlong usurped him, he and his men had made of game of cutting Genzo up. He was a web of scars from it. They only kept him alive because they thought it amusing to watch him clean out the pig sty in rags and chains when he wasn't forced to play Arlong's footstool, or any other number of humiliations they made him endure.
Arlong jerked her head sharply again, forcing her attention back to him. He wore that sickening grin that sent another shiver down her spine.
"But you, my dear, we've rather spoiled you over the years. You and your sister. I've hardly raised a hand to either of you, and you were once permitted to live in my hall. Compared to Genzo, you've been living in luxury, wouldn't you say?" He chuckled when she didn't answer with more than a scowl. "And I know that you have an idea of where Nami ran off to. You were going to run with her, after all. I'm sure she told you what route she planned to take."
"She didn't get the chance," Nojiko bit out.
Arlong only smiled at her. "Still protecting her. I'm sure the valkyries are pleased with your loyalty, and I do respect your conviction, but… Nami belongs to me. The gods have willed it, Nojiko. You would please them more if you told me where Nami went."
She spat in his face.
"So be it," Arlong growled, shoving her away. He waved Kuroobi over as he wiped his face clean. "I should never have been so lenient with you or your sister over the years," he said as Kuroobi grabbed her by the hair and dragged her to the stocks.
The villagers looked around, contemplating if they should make a move to stop what was about to occur. Arlong's men pulled out their swords and put any thought of revolt to bed, and the crowd stepped back warily.
Nojiko struggled to pull her hair free as she was dragged to one of four poles planted in the middle of the square. Genzo called for Arlong to stop the madness, pleaded for mercy. Arlong ignored him, and Chew yanked on his chains to choke off the rest. When Kuroobi shoved her forward into the pole and tore the rope off her wrists to secure them in the iron shackles dangling down from the top of the beam, the villagers once more began to mutter and glance around. One dared to raise his voice, demanding they stop, but he was silenced by the grip of a sword as it slammed into his face.
She bit back a whimper as the iron dug into the raw flesh around her wrists and squeezed her eyes shut in a bid for calm. Kuroobi grabbed the back of her haggard dress and she winced away when she felt the bite of his dagger at the base of her neck. At the first tear of cloth, she balled her fists and tried to jerk away. All she managed to do was earn an errant cut from the knife as he continued to draw it down her dress.
A sob welled in her throat as he tore the the dress apart, baring the skin of her back.
"Tell me what you know now, Nojiko, and this doesn't have to happen," Arlong called to her as he took up a chair on the porch of his hall. She tilted her head up to glare. He stared back, impassive and uncaring, and then waved at Kuroobi when she gave him nothing.
She drew in tight to the pole with every step Kuroobi took away from her. One. Two. Three. Four. Five paces away. Her eyes shut again and she clenched her teeth. She wouldn't cry out. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction.
The first lash of the whip was little more than a warning as it sliced through the air without hitting her. She winced despite herself, expecting the worst, and then relaxed when no pain came. She hardly took a breath when the real strike came snapping at her. The leather bit into her flesh viciously and she barely managed to swallow her cry. Kuroobi didn't pause between strikes and lashed her again, this time the pain sent her falling against the pole. Fire lanced up her spine with the third lash and she could barely hear the villagers weeping as blood rushed through her head, drowning out everything but the sound of the whip snapping in the air again. The fourth strike was the one to make her cry out as she felt her skin split open and the very air stung her to the core.
She didn't know how long Arlong meant for the torture to go on, but she refused to break, refused to betray her sister. But by the seventh strike she was screaming while her tears blinded her.
"One word, Nojiko!" Arlong called out over the eighth lash. "Just point me in the direction I need to go. Nami will never know you said anything." The ninth strike she felt her resolve shift, but not break. She could end this and at the same time slow him down. She didn't need to tell him the truth, just make him believe it was the truth. "Tell me, Nojiko."
"All right!" she screamed out, breaking down with a loud sob as the tenth strike came painfully close to hitting her before Kuroobi pulled it back. She hung limp from her shackles, her legs too weak to keep her up. "She went south!"
"South?" Arlong asked, stepping down from his hall to walk toward her. "Where south? Hedeby? Or further?"
Nojiko couldn't stop crying. She only hoped this would work.
Arlong stood before her and grasped her by the hair to yank her head back. She stared up at his scowl and then more tears made her vision swim, blurring his cruel face mercifully.
"Normandy," she whispered tiredly. "She went to Normandy."
Arlong's eyes widened as she began to weep. He let her head fall as he walked past her, humming to himself in thought.
"Chew, take a ship to Hedeby," he commanded, and Nojiko would have rejoiced if she didn't think it would reveal her lie. "See if anyone's spotted her while you're there, but I need you to get word to our Frankish friend. Have him come here immediately - we can use his help in this search."
Nojiko's tears eased as she frowned in confusion at Arlong's plan.
"Do you really believe Nami would go to Normandy?" Kuroobi asked as Arlong began to walk back to his house.
Arlong snorted. "Of course not," he said, turning to grin maliciously at Nojiko. "There's no chance she would ever step foot on her father's land. No matter how desperate she may be. She would rather rot in their Christian hell than run to the people that destroyed the life she should have known. Isn't that right, Nojiko?"
"No," she cried out. "I swear it! She went to Normandy! It was her only hope for protection!"
Arlong cackled. "Such a worthless lie!" He waved his hand and she screamed out as another lash sliced her. "We'll search to the north," he declared, holding his hand up to stop Kuroobi from striking again. "Nojiko says south, and so my gut says north. I hear there is a king in Oslofjord who might even take an interest in someone like her. Surely she sought the protection of one of her own kind."
"No," Nojiko screamed again as Arlong went back into his hall, laughing over her cries. "Leave her alone! She isn't yours to claim!"
Her cries went unheeded, but at least the lashing was over. She was left there to sob for another hour before Hachi came to collect her, another man within Arlong's inner circle. The warrior wasn't so old, yet his coarse, wavy hair had turned grey long ago. He was another giant with strength her people could never imagine, who carried two swords over his back and an axe at his belt. He scared Nami and herself when they were children, but compared to the rest, he was the most tolerable.
"Come on," he said softly as he undid her shackles. She fell into his arms, too exhausted to stand. The rest of the village had long disappeared into their homes, and most of Arlong's men had grown bored with her tears. "Arlong's told me to feed and bandage you."
"Why not just kill me?" she asked, tears flooding her eyes. She didn't want to die, not yet. She couldn't.
"Because that would upset Nami," Hachi answered easily, as she knew he would. He grinned down at her as he scooped her up. "Don't worry. We'll find her and bring her back. Safe and sound."
She cried out her despair for the rest of the night.
That was the very thing she worried about most.
A/N: I feel so bad for doing that to Nojiko. So terrible. Especially after all the fluff and happiness Nami gets. But seriously, this is not a good time for anyone to be alive. Bad things will happen to everyone at some point.
And yes, I'm making up some OCs for Kid's crew in this. I hope you like them. :)
And no one has guessed right to who will be living in Alasund. I gave hints in the last chapter (think the reason they're taking a bunch of oak there), and the best hint I can give from the pictures of the town would be the appearance of the inner harbor. You'll find out who's there in the next chapter, though.