Talking Back
Ash started at the sky as the Birdcage was formed. It looked scary but at the same time, interesting. She had never been inside a cage before but knew that it wasn't a good thing. Luffy shook her shoulder as she watched the sky.
Sitting up, Ash saw that they had gotten Law off of the chair and that they were ready to move out. "Violet said that you dropped the key. She's going to go look for it." Ash nodded as she stood up. "We need to meet her there. Come on." She nodded again as they watched Pica materialize out of the ground.
When he spoke, all hell broke loose. She started to run with Luffy and Zoro. Luffy had Law under his arm. "Luffy, you need to stop messing with your enemies," Zoro said as they ran. Pica spoke again. Zoro put his hand over his mouth to keep in his laughter.
"See?! Even you can't help but laugh at it!" Luffy shouted. Ash just kept running with them. She had heard his voice before but had never laughed at it. She didn't see what was so funny about his voice to the other two. I've heard and seen funnier things before.
Suddenly, they were flung as Pica's fist connected with the ground. She found herself near some buildings without the others. Her side slammed into one of the buildings and it stopped her from moving. She winced in pain as it exploded on her side. She waited for everything to calm down before moving to do anything.
Once she gathered enough energy to pick herself up, Ash started her search for the others. She found them talking to a man with long, blond hair, a Three Musketeers-like hat, and a cape around his shoulders. She limped over to them as she held her side.
"What's going on? Who are you?" she asked as she came to them. She stood next to Law.
"My, what a beautiful woman!" the man said. "Are you here to admire me?!" She rolled her eyes at him.
"He's Cabbage. I fought with him in the coliseum. He's on our side." Luffy grinned at the man. Soon enough, Luffy and Cabbage started to argue about who was going to take down Doflamingo. A few minutes later, Luffy just picked up Law and motioned for them to leave. Cabbage was talking about popularity among other things. Ash started to follow them but her side was hurting her too much.
"Straw Hat-ya! Wait!" She heard Law call to the teen. Ash had fallen to her knees after a moment of running. Her side was killing her.
"Zoro. Can you carry her?" Ash looked up to see the man coming to her.
"Yeah." He turned around and lowered his back to her. "This way I can fight when I need to and you won't be in the way." Ash looked to Law. He nodded in a silent agreement. Ash got onto Zoro's back and wrapped her legs around his waist to hang on. Her arms went around his neck.
After a bit, Ash had started to doze off because of the pain. It was hurting and making her feel faint. She had been placed on another thing but didn't say anything to anyone about it. Law was lying next to her. He started to talk to Luffy about someone important to him.
"Doflamingo killed someone I admired. His name was Corazon. He was an executive of the Don Quixote family and Doflamingo's biological younger brother." Ash was surprised to hear that. She turned her head to look at him. He had a straight face even after telling them that.
After a bit more, she passed out. It was because of the pain in her side and the exhaustion of keeping herself awake to give them less of a problem to deal with.
...
"Ash." She punched at the wall again. "Ash, calm down." Another punch. Another hole in the wall. "Ash!" She turned her attention to her red-headed best friend. Her anger was almost to the point of exploding. Tears of frustration and anger filled her eyes and spilled over.
"What the fuck do you want, Fox?" She punched the wall again. She didn't want to hit him. She wouldn't hit him. Not again. Not after the trip to the hospital.
"Can we talk about this? Instead of you punching holes in the wall?" Ash took her fist out of the hole-infested wall and turned to him. "Sit down somewhere." She sat on the edge of the bed.
"What do you want me to say? That I lied? That I was shown that my word means nothing in this God forsaken town?" She ran a hand through her slightly long hair. It disgusted her. Memories filled her and she scrunched up her nose at them.
"I believe you. It's just..." Ash glared at him.
"Just what?"
Fox sighed. "He has ties in the government. He can manipulate them into thinking anything he wants them to."
"Hahaha. Should've know." She got up and went to the bathroom. Ash picked up a pair of scissors on her way and started to cut her hair when she stood in front of the mirror. "You accuse that man of molesting or trying to rape you and it backfires on you. Like a dog that changed its mind and sees you as a threat instead of a harmless bystander."
"I know you told them the truth. You wouldn't just come out and say anything like that to the public if it wasn't the truth." Fox had followed her to the bathroom. "Why are you cutting your hair? It looked great before." He didn't know.
Ash had watched all the hair fall into the sink. She place the scissors on the side before looking into the mirror again. "I don't like being treated like I'm a delicate flower and that I won't do anything to protect myself." She glared at herself in the mirror. "People are going to start to realize that I'm not all bark and no bite." She grinned into the mirror. "This bitch doesn't just bark. The bark is just a warning. Next comes the bite. And it will be a nasty bite when I get you in my jaws. Cause I won't let you go until I rip your skin off or you bleed to death." Ash turned to Fox. He was grinning along with her.
...
Ash opened her eyes to see that the Birdcage was still in place. The only difference with the situation was that she didn't hear any of the others. She sat up and shook her head to clear her thoughts. Her side had stopped hurting as bad as before but it still hurt. She looked around and saw that she was on the top of the palace. Doflamingo was sitting just next to him.
"Fuffuffu. Good. You're awake." She glared at him. Her head hurt like hell and she was pissed just by seeing him. It made it worse when he spoke to her.
"Where are Luffy and Law?" Ash knew she hit a sensitive spot when she asked that. It made Doflamingo frown. "What did you do?"
"I just stole you from the a bit ago." He laughed again. His grin was back. "Now, since Law isn't here, why don't you tell me your relationship with him?" She glared even harder at him.
"Like I told you before, he is my friend and the doctor that has been helping me with my back." She stood up. "You have no reign over me." It was her turn to grin. "I am free. And that won't change as long as I am alive."
"Ash! How dare you speak to Doffy like that! He has given you a place to stay and food to eat when you were hurt!" Her anger rose.
"And treated me like a prisoner!" Ash grinned again. "I had lied."
"Lied about what?" Doflamingo seemed interested in what she had to say.
"The day I disappeared for a while, I wasn't in the restroom. I had taken a walk outside to the beach." He frowned again. "I never trusted you from the moment I heard your voice." Ash laughed. "Hell, I trusted Baby 5 more than anyone else in this place. I trusted Law because of what you told me the night before and he wasn't with you. He actually let me do whatever I wanted and go wherever I wanted!"
"I would have given you the same things," Doflamingo replied.
"Hahaha. That's funny. Last thing I heard, I couldn't go anywhere outside of the palace without a chaperone. Law let me go places without being watched!" She stomped her food and almost put a hole in the ground. "Now, where are my friends?"
Suddenly, strings were wrapped around her. They were holding her but not cutting her. She didn't think they could. "Ash, you don't need to worry about them, right now." She was brought to stand in front of him. He was grinning from ear to ear. "I'm sorry that I upset you. Why don't I apologize for my mistake." Ash hated the way his voice sounded. It sent a shiver of disgust down her spine. She was then moved to sit on Doflamingo's lap. He kissed the top of her head.
Luffy. Law. I hope you get here soon of I will be the one to kick his ass. I'm playing along to buy you some time. Hurry the fuck up or he will already be killed by the time you get here. She decided not to struggled against the strings. Ash would only either pass through them or break them and not get cut.
Not too long after her torture started, Luffy and Law appeared on the roof. She was ecstatic to see them. "Mingo! Let her go!" Luffy looked ready to kill him. Law was in a similar state.
"Now, why would I do that? So you can take her away again? Or so that you can keep her to yourselves?" She saw fury burning in Law's eyes. There was something else that she had seen before too but couldn't place what it was.
She closed her eyes as the fight started. She didn't want to see either of them get hurt. After a few minutes, Doflamingo disappeared from under her and she fell onto the seat he had been sitting on. Ash pushed at the strings and they disappeared. She looked over to see Law pointing his nadochi at Trebol. She smiled.
About a good while later, Ash found herself being held down by Trebol as Doflamingo severed Law's arm from his body. His screams of agony made her start to cry. Luffy was a floor below dealing with his own problem. She watched as Doflamingo attacked him more.
Anger, sadness, and grief settled into her as she saw Law get shot multiple times. When he was left alone, Ash's face took on one of blankness. I'm sorry, Law. But I can't help it. Please, forgive me. She didn't even have to struggle out of the sticky goo-like stuff.
Ash walked towards Law's nadochi. It was a sharp object and good for cutting. "Trebol, I thought you were holding her down?"
"I was! How did she escape?!" She made it over to the weapon and lifted up the sleeves of her shirt. Lifting the nadochi, she began to slice at her arms. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six... She counted in her head as she sliced at her skin.
"Get her to stop! She'll kill herself at this point!" Soon enough, the weapon was taken and thrown away from her. Her gaze was still blank. Blood leaked down her arms and dripped onto the ground. She stared down at it.
Luffy's shouting rang through her head. She was brought away from Law's body. Her only thoughts were that she let him die. I was right here and I let him kill him. I should've done something but I didn't. Now, Law is dead.
Luffy stopped moving near Law's body. She was curious at to what was happening. Luffy went to attack Doflamingo but was quickly replaced with Law. Relief flooded into her at the sight of her friend. It took a large weight off of her shoulders.
Slowly, her vision started to fade. I've lost too much blood. I...I'm sorry, Law. Please, don't be angry with me. I'm so sorry. After that, she passed out from blood loss.
When she woke up, she was lying next to Law on some grass. He was getting his arm reattached to his body. She lifted her arm and saw that it was bandaged. Ash lifted the other to find it in the same state. "Law, what...what's going on?" He looked to her and she saw that he was relieved about something.
"Good. You're awake." A small person came up to her. She was beautiful and she looked ready to cry. "They healed you as much as they could."
"My name is Princess Mansherry." There was a small man that came up to her.
"Some of the cuts on your arms needed stitches so I sewed those closed. I had to find some thread to do so." The Princess started to cry.
"Why is she crying?" Ash brought her hand out to the small female. The girl grabbed her fingers and cried into them.
"We were so worried about you!" she cried. Ash felt guilty. "You lost a lot of blood and were on the brink of death! That man is horrible! How could he do this to you?!" Mansherry squeezed her fingers as tears poured from her eyes and wet her hand.
Ash looked to Law. He shook his head as if to tell her not to say anything about it. She nodded and picked up the girl. "I'm sorry to worry you. I promise, it won't happen again." She placed Mansherry on her chest. She sat there. "I'm still exhausted and dizzy. What's happening with the fight?"
"Straw Hat-ya is fighting Doflamingo. He seems to be winning but it's too early to say," Law informed. She looed to where he was pointing.
"He's winning, Trafalgar! There is no doubt about that!" Ash knew that voice. It was Cabbage. She was okay with him since Luffy told her he was on their side.
In the sky, Ash saw Luffy. Or something that resembled Luffy. The person or object was large and moved fast. She could see him even though it was almost near impossible when he moved. He looked terrifying and he slightly scared her. From the sweet, goofy teen she had met to an almost monster like form.
As she watched what happened, Luffy suddenly disappeared. Law grabbed her arm and they were teleported to a roof top. "Stay here. I'll be back in a minute. Just...stay safe." Ash nodded as Law made another Room and teleported somewhere else.
Ash looked to the sky again. Mother, father, Cedric. Please, help me stay alive long enough to figure out what I want after this. To be truthful, I don't know if I want to go home. I would like for you to tell Fox that I'm sorry and that he means the world to me but I want to stay here. She smiled up to the sky.
A few minutes later, Law appeared on the roof with Luffy. He was almost passed out and it was a sad sight to see. "What's wrong with him? Why is he so exhausted?"
Law's breath was labored and Ash knew he was in pain. "His Haki is depleted. He needs to gain it back or we will be killed." He went silent for a second. "I forgot to tell you that the Birdcage is closing in on us." A spark of fear coursed through her but knew that it was only a matter of time before they were saved.
Going over to Luffy, she laid down next to him. She saw an open cut on his arm. Taking her thumb, she bit it enough to make it bleed. When she had gathered enough blood, she dropped it into the cut on his arm. She knew it seemed strange and that she was suffering from blood loss already, but she had an idea.
Settling back down, she watched to see how he reacted to her blood. She acted positively to his. Maybe he would do the same with hers. Deciding to sit up instead to get a better view, she watched his eyes spark to life. There was a fire burning in his soul that she could see. It was renewed inside him.
Slowly, he started to rise from the ground. Ash smiled. This is interesting. Law looked over and his eyes widened. Luffy walked over to him and spoke about getting back into the action. Law tried to tell him that it wasn't time but Luffy insisted.
As Law made a Room, she stood up and walked over to Law. Luffy disappeared and the woman known as Violet was in his place. Ash plopped down on the ground next to Law and sighed. Violet seemed to be okay and she thanked Law.
"Ash, you don't look so good. Are you okay?" Ash smiled. She was starting to like that they were worried about her.
"Yes, thank you." Ash turned her attention to Law. "I'm more worried for Law than anything else." She watched his face turn a light shade of pink. Violet smiled at them.
"Yes. I understand." A little bit later, Law saved a pink-haired woman from falling to her death. She dropped onto the roof with them. Ash noticed that she was dressed like a gladiator. It was a revealing outfit in her opinion. Too much skin was showing.
"Lucy is winning! Look!" the pink-haired woman shouted as she pointed to the sky. Ash looked up and saw Luffy and Doflamingo facing off yet again. Please, Luffy. End this war. End the suffering and torture. Tears fell down her cheeks. You need to help us. Everyone is counting on you. Even as she cried, a smile was showing on her face.
She watched as Doflamingo feel to the ground and through it. Ash closed her eyes as relief ran through her. He's defeated. We're free. We are free from him. She leaned over and laid her head on Law's shoulder. Exhaustion was hitting her like waves from the blood loss and the excitement that flowed through her.
"Ash-ya, are you okay?" Law's voice sounded far away even though she knew he was sitting right next to her. "Ash-ya, please, say something."
"I...I'm just tired." Her consciousness was slowly fading. "Don't worry about me. I'm not dead yet."
"Trafalgar, is she going to be okay? We can carry her if we need to." That was Violet. Or, it sounded like her.
"She will be fine. She's just tired." Ash's mind gave out and she was brought into the land of dreams. But, they don't resemble anything she knew.
I know it has been a while but here is the next chapter. I hope you enjoy it. Please, tell me what you think. Hope you are having great holidays and wish you a great day. I love you all. Tatty-bye!