Sight
The feeling of water going down her throat awoke Ash from sleep. She still couldn't move or open her eyes. She was being given water she assumed was by Baby 5. "It feels like I'm a mother looking over her child. It makes me so happy," Baby 5 said excitedly. Ash didn't know what was going on at first.
The bang of the door hitting off the wall behind it didn't bother Baby 5 at all. "Baby 5! I heard that there is a woman here! Why did you bring a person into our home?! Have you lost your mind?! She could be an enemy!" The voice was feminine. Maybe an older woman.
"She needs my help. She can hardly move and she will die if I don't help her." Ash felt her rub a hand through her hair. "Doffy said that I could keep her. She is like a child to me." Her voice sounded proud. The other woman sighed.
"Trebol wants to come and see her. It told him that I wanted to get a look at her first." The sound of a sloppy substance sounded outside in the hall.
"Can I see her now? Doffy said that she was very interesting." The sound got closer. "She looks so beautiful. What is she?" Ash didn't understand the question asked.
"I think she's a human. I haven't found anything to indicate that she is anything but." Baby 5 cradled her head and stroked her hair. She had set the cup of water down a few moments before. "She can't move and I can't figure out why. She can't even speak to me." Baby 5 sounded depressed at that.
"Baby 5!" A high-pitched voice sounded from the doorway. It sounded like a boy going through puberty. "Young Master has a mission for you. I'm here to take over for you." He sounded excited. Baby 5 tightened her grip before letting her go and laying her back down.
"Okay. Don't worry about bathing her. I'll do it when I get back." With that, she was gone. The two from before left with her. High-heels sounded on the ground. She was curious as to why she could still hear them.
"You look really pretty. No wonder the Young Master has taken an interest in you." A hand touched her forehead and moved some of her hair. "You look young. I wonder how old you are." He sat down in the same seat that Baby 5 had been in before.
Ash stayed awake for the time being. This new man talked about all the stuff they would do when she was able to move. He seemed to like her even though he knew nothing about her. Mustering a little bit of her energy, Ash was able to move her body but only by a small amount. It made the man scream when she twitched her arms.
"Don't do that! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?!" Ash wanted to laugh but couldn't She couldn't see him but his scream was priceless.
A few hours passed before Baby 5 came back. "You can go now. I have to give her a bath." The guy left after telling her what Ash had done. Baby 5 uncovered her. She picked her up, bridal-style, and started to walk. The movement still hurt her but not as bad as before. They came to a place and Baby 5 laid her on the floor of the new room.
Ash heard the sound of water. It went on for a bit before being turned off. Her bandages were removed and then she was lifted once again. The water was warm but burned her like she was stuck in a raging fire. "AHHHHHHHHH!" she screamed again. Baby 5 started to panic.
"Sorry! I'm so sorry! Please, forgive me! I don't mean to hurt you!" Ash was trying to keep her breath under control. It hurt like fire was consuming her entire body. Baby 5 proceeded to bathe her after she calmed down. It was very awkward on her part and she now felt uncomfortable. She hadn't had someone do this for her since she was fourteen.
Baby 5 was careful of her wounds and was cautious about hurting her again. It was good that she cared. Suddenly, the door opened. Footsteps let her know that someone entered the room with them. "Baby 5, has she woke up? Can she speak or more?" Ash felt embarrassed that a man would walk in on a woman bathing.
"No, sir. Dellinger said that she scared him. She was able to twitch but nothing more." She rinsed her body off. "I came to give her a bath." The man never left the room.
"How long do you think it will take?" The water was drained and a towel laid over her body.
"I'm not a doctor, so I don't know. She seems to still respond to pain. She can scream when it hurts but it seems like it is tearing at her throat every time she does it." The towel was wrapped around her body as she was lifted once again.
"I need to talk to Bellamy. He took her clothes to get washed." The man followed them as Baby 5 took her back to the room.
"What happened to her arms and legs?" the man asked as she was set on the bed. Baby 5 started to re-bandage her.
"I don't know. She also has scars on her wrists and stomach. I can't tell how or why there were made." Baby 5 sounded as if it hurt her to know about the damage to her body.
"So, she has been through some battles?" If you count my days of self-hatred, then yeah. I've been in quiet a few. She didn't hear the woman answer him. "That will be a question for her to answer." He left the room. Baby 5 sat back down. Ash started to fall asleep. She was exhausted from the bath. She let sleep claim her once more.
...
When Ash got up again, she was able to open her eyes. The ceiling was white along with the walls. She was able to turn her head and saw the woman that had been taking care of her for the first time. She was asleep in the chair. Baby 5 was in a maid's dress that was a little too short for her liking, had a maid's headband on her head, and black high-heels to match the dress.
She tried to move her body and found out that she could. Ash also noticed that she was dressed in a nightgown. She tried to sit up. As she did so, she noticed that her movements were heavy and slow. It was like she was drugged with something.
When she was sitting up, Ash reached out to touch Baby 5. It startled the woman and she almost fell out of her seat. Calming down, the woman looked at her. "You're awake! Can you speak? Please, try to."
Ash opened her mouth and moved it. No sound escaped her lips even as she tried. It was as if she was a mute. Baby 5 deflated. Ash made the motion that she could write. Baby 5 understood and left to get some paper and something to write with. Ash waited patiently for her to return.
Coming back, she handed her the paper and a pen. Ash wrote down what she wanted to ask. 'Where am I? Could you please tell me?'
"You're on the island of Dressrosa. Right now, you are in the palace infirmary." Ash had never heard of the island. She had gotten maps of everywhere in the world. Dressrosa wasn't on any of them. "I'll be right back. Please, relax and stay put." Baby 5 left the room. Ash took a piece of the paper and started to draw.
On the paper, she drew the creature that had swallowed her. She remembered it from that day. She didn't even know what day it was. Maybe I'll ask when she gets back.
After she was finished with the drawing, Baby 5 returned with a large man. Is he like a giant or something? He's easily about nine to ten fee tall. He stopped right beside her bed. "So, she can write by not speak?" It was the man from before. He was very tall with blond hair and tan skin. His style was strange. She couldn't see his eyes because of the glasses and the pink, feather coat made her question what he was about.
Taking a clean piece of paper, she wrote 'Yes' on it. He seemed to be upset about that. 'Who are you? Could you please tell me? My name is Ash.' She held it up for him to see.
"Hm. My name is Doflamingo. Nice to meet you, Miss Ash. Baby 5 is the one that found you and brought you here." He got closer. "How did you get to this island? Did you crash your ship? Or were you dropped here by someone?" Ash grabbed the picture she drew before and held it up to him. "That's a sea king. Did it attack you?"
She put the paper to the side and wrote on a clean sheet. 'It swallowed me. I have no idea how I ended up here.' The man seemed confused.
"If it swallowed you, you would be dead. That is intriguing. You can stay here but we need to know more about you. It can wait until you are able to speak, though. Baby 5 can help you around and anything else. The others will also help if you need them." She nodded in agreement. Doflamingo went to leave. "Get her some better clothes. She can come to dinner with us tonight." And, he was gone.
"Come with me. I can give you your clothes and we can go into town for new clothes." Ash nodded. Baby 5 helped her stand and get changed. She needed her help to walk even if she was a proud woman. Ash knew when to swallow her pride and ask for help. This was one of those times.
In the town, Ash was surprised and astonished. There were people along with living toys that walked the street. She stayed close to Baby 5 in case something happened. She could hear voices but they were too quiet to understand. Ash was led to a clothing store for women. She made a face as she stumbled after the other.
"Miss Pearl, are you here?" Ash heard a crash from a back room. Out came a short woman that was about an inch or two shorter than Ash.
"Yes, dear. Did you need another dress? Have you dirtied up another one?" Ash wondered how Baby 5 could've dirtied them up.
"No, ma'am. I need to get a fitting for an evening gown." She moved to show her to the woman. "This is Ash. She is the one that needs the dress. Could you get her fitted for one by tonight?"
The old woman came up to her. "This is the first woman I have ever seen this short. She is almost the height of a child." Ash was used to the comments of her height. "What kind of evening gown are you looking for? It should express the wearer." Pearl turned back to Baby 5. "Do you know anything about her?" The other shook her head. "Well, she can look at the dressed that I have. I could even fit one to her size in about an hour or so."
Baby 5 helped her move around the shop. There were dresses from a range of colours and styles. She stopped at one in particular. It was a black dress that had long sleeves and a long skirt. It had white designs on the skirt part and was solid black on the bodice. She pointed to it.
After about two hours, the dress was fitted. It wasn't dragging the floor like it had been before. Pearl smiled as she stood back from her. "You look positively stunning. It goes beautifully with your figure." Ash blushed at the praise. "But, what happened to your arms and legs, deary? The dress covers the bandages but what happened?" Ash closed herself off. She didn't want to answer her.
"She had an accident. She doesn't like to talk about it." Baby 5 hugged the old woman. "Thank you for your time. I think this will be a fantastic dress to wear for dinner." She helped Ash back into her clothes.
"Tell Doflamingo that this dress is on the house. She is such a beautiful woman that I can let her have it for free." Baby 5 thanked her while Ash bowed to say her thanks. She felt bad that she couldn't verbally thank the kind woman.
Leaving that shop, Baby still had to help her walk. She was getting annoyed that her body was heavy and it felt like she was drugged. They went to five different clothing shops and got clothes. Baby 5 wasn't used to her tastes and was confused when she wanted to go into men's clothing shops for clothes.
Getting back to the palace, it was getting dark. "Dinner will be ready shortly. We should get dressed for dinner," Baby 5 announced. Ash agreed and followed the woman to a room. She was confused as to why they weren't going back to the other room.
Getting to their destination, Ash guessed that it was Baby 5's room. It was decorated in pink and made her scrunch up her nose at the colour. She didn't like the colour pink all that much. They got dressed and Baby 5 even helped her put some heels on. It made her even more unsteady on her feet. She wasn't used to heels.
Shakily, Ash was escorted to the dining room. Baby 5 led her to a seat next to her and helped her sit down. She was tired and exhausted from moving around but also, hungry. Soon, more people started to enter the room. Most of them were men and they stopped in their tracks to just stare at her. She saw their looks of astonishment.
When everyone but Doflamingo was in the room and sitting down, they all went quiet as the doors opened. Doflamingo stood in the doorway. He also seemed to stop to stare, as well. She didn't understand why everyone was staring at her. I don't look any different than normal. Right?
"I see that our guest is joining us tonight." Doflamingo sat at the head of the table. That would make him one seat over because Baby 5 was next to him. "It is a good thing that you could join us for dinner tonight." He was grinning as he spoke. She bowed her head.
The food was served and Ash was astonished at all of it. She had never seen so many things on a table at once. So many that she didn't know what was what. Taking a few things from different platters, she made her plate. It was filled enough to her liking.
Taking her fork, Ash dug in and started to eat. It was good. She made sure to use her table manners. A guest is always polite and shows their manners no matter how their host or hosts act or what they think of their meal. She was glad that the food tasted delicious. She caught Doflamingo watching her every so often that she looked out the corner of her eye. The same was for all the men at the table.
After dinner, Doflamingo asked Baby 5 and Ash to stay behind for a bit. They both obeyed even though Ash was extremely tired. She leaned heavily on Baby 5. "Baby 5, I want you to give Miss Ash the room next to yours when she can move on her own. She can always knock on the wall if she needs you." Baby 5 agreed. "For now, she can stay with you in your room." The grin was still there. "Have a good night, Ash." Ash bowed before leaving the room with Baby 5's help.
They got back to the room. Baby 5 helped Ash dress in some nightclothes and led her to the bed. "You can sleep in my bed with me. Tell me if you get hurt or start having pains in your back, arms, or legs." Ash nodded as she got in the bed. She laid down with the woman next to her. The bed was way more comfortable than the one in the infirmary.
Baby 5 got in and snuggled up to her. It made her feel like she was in bed with her mother again. The woman started to hum and it made her remember her mother. It was nice and made her feel safe. It slowly put her to sleep. She had the image of her mother in her mind as she slowly drifted off to sleep.
Hope you like the new chapter. More things will be revealed in the next chapter. Please, tell me what you think. Have a fantastic day. Tatty-bye!
Fun Fact of the Day - Your nose can remember 50,000 different smells.