Worse
"Excuse me, young lady. What is your name?" Ash looked up to the man that spoke to her. He had short, white blond hair, pale skin, and green eyes. He wore a dark brown shirt that had a few marks of dirt on it along with a pair of blue jeans that had the same marks and black combat boots. He also had a long, black jacket on him.
"Momma said I shouldn't talk to strangers," Ash replied. She was carrying a bucket of water to the backyard. Her mother was trying to water her flowers.
The man smiled at her. "That's a good thing. My name is Travis." Ash kept staring at him. "Now, we aren't total strangers, right? Can you tell me your name now?"
She knew she shouldn't but she decided that it couldn't hurt to tell him. "My name is Ash." She placed the bucket down. Ash held out her right hand. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Travis." The man looked down at her hand and kept smiling.
He eventually took her hand and shook it. "Such a sweet, little girl. Who taught you to shake hands with others?" They parted hands and she picked up her bucket again.
"My daddy told me that I should do that every time I meet someone new. It's the polite thing to do." The man's smile faltered a little but stayed in place.
"Oh. He has taught you well. Would you like to see a magick trick?" This interested Ash.
"What kind of magick trick?" He stuck his hand in his jacket and pulled out a bouquet of flowers. She liked that trick.
"Here." He placed them in the bucket. "Give these to your mother." Ash nodded. He put up his right hand and pushed his left hand forward into the right. Ash watched him pull back and a charm appeared in his hand. It was a small panda bear. "Here you go. Keep it with you and it should protect you." Ash nodded as she took the charm.
"Ash, honey, I need the water," her mother called.
"I'll see you again sometime, Ash. Have a great day." Travis waved goodbye before walking away. Ash looked toward the backyard before turning back. She was shocked. Travis was gone. It was like he had disappeared.
"Coming, Momma!" Ash rushed to the backyard as fast as she could without spilling the water. Her mother was planting some tulips. She turned to her as she came up to her.
"My, what beautiful flowers. I have never seen any flower like these before." The flowers were in the shape of hearts, were blue in colour, and had a light green stem and leaves. "Where did you get them?"
"A man named Travis gave them to me for you," Ash answered. Her mother smiled. She placed the bucket down. "He also gave me this." She held up the charm. "He was very nice."
"That's good. Is he still here?"
"No, ma'am. He left a minute ago." Her mother nodded and went back to gardening. Ash helped her. She loved gardening with her mother. It was a hobby that they bother loved to do together.
...
Voices awoke Ash from her slumber. She slowly opened her eyes and turned to the voices. There was a man sitting on the bed. Ash also found Luffy lying next to her on the bed. He was passed out from earlier that day. She smiled. Ash sat up, rubbed her eyes to clear them, and yawned.
"Sorry, Ash. Did we wake you?" Robin asked. Ash shook her head.
"No. I woke up on my own." Her attention fell onto the new person in the room. "Who are you, if you don't mind me asking?" The man smiled.
"My name is Sabo. I am Luffy's older brother." She nodded. "I heard a little bit about you from Luffy." He looked curious. "Do you mind if I take a look at your back?" Ash shrugged.
Removing her shirt and the bandages, Ash gave the man her back. "Please, don't touch them. They hurt when people touch them." Sabo agreed not to touch her back.
"This is fascinating. I have never seen marks like this before. What did this to you?" He sounded intrigued.
"A sea king. He didn't mean to do it. It just happened." The whole room fell silent.
"What did you just say?" Zoro asked. "Did you say a sea king, an aggressive, enormous, man-eating monster didn't mean to harm you?"
"Yes. I did because that is what he told me. He was sorry for harming me." Ash didn't understand their shock. "It's not that big a deal."
"Ash, that is not something we hear everyday. Sea kings are aggressive and cause harm to people on a daily basis," Sabo said. "We are sorry if it sounds as if we are skeptical about it."
"That's fine. Nobody believed me at first. They were shocked I even survived an encounter with one." A thought hit her. "I wonder if he is still around here."
"If he is, can you take me to him before I leave?" Ash agreed. It would be nice to see her friend again after a month.
Soon enough, Sabo and Ash left the small cabin with Robin in tow. She also wanted to see the sea king. They walked to the beach and she waded into the water a little under her calves were covered in the water.
Looking down, she saw small fish swimming around her legs. "Is there something you need, Ash?" a small fish asked. She nodded and crouched down.
I need to speak to the sea king that I spoke to about a month ago. Is he still around here?
"Yes. He's still here. We can go get him." The fish swam away and she moved out of the water.
"He'll be here in a moment." The two nodded and she sat on the shore. Her back was sore and she was afraid that it would start to hurt again.
A few minutes later, the sea king rose from the water. She smiled at him as she heard the other two gasped in fear. "Ash, it is good to see you again. I see that you have brought friends."
"Yes. Their names are Sabo and Robin. They wanted to meet you." She kept smiling. "They can't believe that your kind can be friendly. They think you are always aggressive." She turned to see the two staring at her with wide eyes.
"Hm. That is most of the time. I am kind to you because none of us see you as a threat. We also don't attack if you are in the vicinity. We don't want to hurt you." He was quiet for a moment. "How is your back?"
"It still hurts when people touch it or some type of liquid touches it. It seems that the wounds aren't healing like they should."
"I am truly sorry about that. You seem to be different from normal mortals. It should've healed by now." Ash shrugged.
"Ash, what are you two talking about?" Sabo asked. He seemed confused.
"My back. The wounds are not fresh. I have had them for about a month or so. They haven't healed in the slightest." Sabo's eyes widened. "He didn't mean to do it. It just happened when he put me down."
"I never wanted to hurt you." He raised his head to the sky. "I have to go. There will be Marines coming to this island tomorrow. Be prepared and stay safe."
"Will do." With that said, the sea king left. Ash stood up and dusted her clothes off. "He said he is normally aggressive but when it comes to me, he is very king and friendly."
"Amazing. This is very different from what we are used to." Ash understood. She was in the same boat as them.
"There is two other things that I can do other than talk to animals." Ash imagined the room that they had been in. She knew where Zoro had been sitting. Crouching down, Ash put her hand to the ground.
"What are you doing?" Sabo asked.
"Shh. I need to concentrate." She imagined the dark wood floorboards with Bellamy, Law, and the soldier man sleeping on them draped in blankets. Law was laying on his nadochi, the soldier was using a pile of books, Bellamy was on a pillow. Franky, Zoro, Kin'emon, and the other samurai were sitting on the floor. Usopp was face-first on the ground, asleep. Slowly, her hand started to go through the ground. She latched onto something, or someone. Getting a good grip on it, she pulled the object through the ground.
Standing up, she had Zoro in one hand. "What the fuck just happened? How did I get here?" Zoro seemed confused.
"Fascinating. So, you can pull people from places?" Sabo asked. Ash shook her head as she let Zoro go.
"No. Not exactly. It's more like I can create invisible portals and either bring things out of them or go through them to different places." She smiled and shrugged. "But it only works if I can visualize the area."
"You mean like having specific details of that area?"
"Precisely." She stepped away from Zoro. "Law has also told me that devil fruit powers have no effect on me." Sabo grinned. "You can try if you want."
Bringing up his hand, Sabo turned it to fire. He ran at her and punched at her while using his fire. Reflexively, Ash held up her arm and blocked the attack. His fist connected with her arms. He continued to grin as his whole body turned to fire. It was Ash's turn to grin. Grabbing at the flames, she grabbed a holt of them and yanked down.
Sabo materialized and fell to the ground. "Interesting. You can grab me as if I am a physical form." Ash let him go and he stood up. "It is like you can see a perso that changed into a non-physical object."
"Well, fire is part of a chemical process. So is smoke. They are made from chemicals or natural ways." She shrugged. "To be honest, when I grabbed the fire, it was as if you were still in front of me. Visually, you were fire. Physically, you were still the same thing. A person. A solid object."
"That is a good power. People with devil fruits won't be able to harm you," Sabo said as he smiled.
"Not to mention that she has super strength," Zoro commented. Everyone turned to him. "What are you looking at me like that fore?"
"Zoro-kun, could you explain what you mean?" Zoro scratched his head.
"Did you ever see the shower room after Law was finished washing her?" Robin shook her head. "She almost put a few holes in the walls and floor. Not to mention, she was able to match Luffy in strength when he tried to attack her."
"I wouldn't actually say 'match'. It was more like she was stronger than him," Robin pointed out. "He was flung at least once since she has been on the ship and that led to him being on the other side of the ship."
"See? She is stronger. It isn't normal." Ash just scratched her head as she yawned.
"You two can keep talking. I'm going back to bed." She turned to Sabo. "It was nice meeting you," Ash said as she bowed. Sabo said his goodbyes before she walked back to the cabin. She was tired and worried about her back. It was staring to sting and it worried her even more.
Back at the cabin, Ash found that Franky had fallen asleep as was everyone else. She stepped around each person on the floor and got to the bed. Looking down, she decided to move Usopp so that he wasn't face-planted into the floor. He was now fully on the floor and not hurting his neck.
Ash stood next to Law for a minute. Crouching down, she thought that he looked more peaceful when he slept. Leaning down, she placed a kiss on his head before getting back up. She crawled back into the bed next to Luffy and fell asleep. She was happy about where she was.
...
"AHHHHHH!" Ash screamed as she woke up. Her back was on fire and all she felt was immense pain. She grabbed the blanket on her and ripped it in her hands by accident. "FUCK! IT FUCKING HURTS!"
"Ash, what's wrong? Are you okay?" Robin sounded extremely concerned.
Ash tried to stand but couldn't. She fell over, face-first into the bed. "Shit!" she screamed into the bed.
"Robinland, what is wrong with Ashland?" the soldier asked.
Ash raised her head and groaned in pain. Luffy was looking at her as he ate. "Ash, do I need to get Torao?"
"Y-Yes. That...would help me...greatly." Luffy stood up and walked outside. Ash punched the wall and put a hole in it. She removed her hand and looked at the hole. "Sorry...about that."
"No worries. I can fix it." The soldier went to touch her.
"Don't...Don't touch me." She didn't mean to sound angry or rude. "Sorry."
"Her back is the problem. Just don't touch her back." Kryos nodded before touching her shoulder.
Law came in with Luffy in tow. "Before we leave, I need to see your back." Ash nodded before removing her shirt.
"Do...Do we need to leave the room?" Kryos asked. To Ash, he sounded embarrassed.
"No. You're fine. I'm just taking a look at her back." Ash turned around and gave Law her back. He removed the bandages and gasped. Everyone gasped.
"What's wrong?" Panic set in. "What the hell is wrong with my back, Law?! Is something wrong?!" It was to the point that she rose from the bed. "Give me a mirror! I want to see it for myself!" Kryos pointed to a mirror on the wall.
Ash covered her breasts with one arm and turned her back to the mirror. She craned her head to look at her back. She gasped and almost screamed at what she saw. Reaching around, she prodded the skin around her wounds. It hurt like it was ripping off but it wasn't, right now at least. The skin around the wounds had turned a blackish-purple and didn't look good at all. It was like spider webs of veins had turned that colour and spread from the entrance of the wounds to all over her back.
"What happened for it to look like that?" Robin asked. She got up and came over to her. "Torao-kun, do you know what is wrong with them?"
Ash looked to Law. He looked like he was at a loss for words. "I-I don't know. This...This is new to me. I don't know what is happening to her." He rubbed his chin. "We need to hurry and get back to the others. I need to run tests on her back." He walked up to her. "How does it feel? Other than the initial pain?"
Bellamy even looked shocked about what was happening. "It feels like my skin is peeling and falling off. Like when you get a sunburn but instead of one layer of skin peeling off like it should, it is like every layer of your skin is peeling off at the same time because the burnt layer of skin is attacked too good and won't come off like it should. Add to the fact that it also feels as if someone has poured boiling oil on my back and decided to scrape the burnt skin away with a pocket knife." Usopp looked ready to puke. Everyone else had wide eyes and looked shocked. "Hm. Too much detail?"
"Ash, you are almost as bad as Robin! Please, that was horrible!" Usopp dry heaved like he wanted to throw up.
"Hey, I was asked how I feel right now. For anyone to know how much pain I am in, I have to give specific details. I also have to let my doctor know how I really feel at this moment!" She screamed again. "Fuck!" Ash dropped to her knees. She punched the floor. "I'm getting tired of this shit!" Ash stood up and slammed her back onto a wall. She bit her lip to keep in a scream. She started to rub her back on the rough wood.
"Ash-ya, what are you trying to do?! You need to stop before you hurt yourself!" Everyone gathered round her. She glared at them all.
"It fucking hurts! What else do you want me to do?! Not only does it hurt, it itches like when you get a rash that itches to the point that you rip your skin open and blood spills down just to get it to stop itching!" Usopp looked ready to throw up again. "So, what am I supposed to do?!"
Kryos went to a cabinet and grabbed a jar. "Lawland, rub this on her back. It might help with the pain and itching." She continued to scratch her back on the wood.
"You better hurry. Some of her skin is flaking off," Franky said. Usopp dashed out of the house.
"I need someone to volunteer to hold her down." She glared at them all. Luffy walked up and grabbed her. She went to fight him before she was wrapped in his arms. She struggled against him as he held her.
"Do it now! I don't think I can hold her for long!" She growled, hissed, and screamed to get away. Anger hit her. She didn't want to be held down.
"Let me go! I won't go anywhere!" Her thoughts went back to when she was fifteen. The pain, itching, and desperate struggle to get away made her thoughts cloud. "No! I don't want the needle again!" Everyone stopped moving. She still struggled. "I don't want it again! It messes with my head! I hate it! I hate it! Don't do it again!"
"Luffy, let her go!" She heard Zoro shout. Suddenly, she was let go and fell to the ground. She gasped for breath.
Ash curled into a ball with her back exposed. She held her arms to her chest. "I don't want to go on the trip again. It was horrible. It made me sick. I don't want the needle again."
"Ash-ya, are you okay? I'm going to put it on your back now." She nodded and flinched he moved closer to her.
"Just...don't inject anything into me."
"I won't. It's just something to put on your back." She felt him touch her. She screamed and scraped her fingers down her arms.
"Lawland, she is bleeding on her arms."
"I know. I will fix that in a moment." When he stopped touching her back, Ash let out a breath that she didn't know she was holding. Law lifted her up and asked for bandages. He helped her get fixed up and her shirt back on.
Franky looked out the window. "We need to go. The Marines are on the way." Everyone agreed and got ready. Franky told Ash that he would carry her. She accepted his help and rode on his back. Law said that he had something to do and left the group. Luffy, also, had something to do and ran off.
Burying her face into Franky's back, Ash didn't see what was going on. She heard fighting but never saw it. Franky kept running as she pushed her face further into his back. Her back was still hurting but is was a dull ache now.
When everything was said and done, they started to have a feast on the ship as they left Dressrosa. She drank with them and ate. She saw a lot of people that she had never met on the island and they were all having a great time.
Ash giggled when she saw Zoro grab Law and drag him over to sit with him. Just seeing everyone so happy and jolly made her smile. She finished her cup just as Luffy came up to her. "Wanna dance?" He looked like he was having fun.
Ash smiled and stood. "Sure." Luffy took her hands and began to do a jig with her. She laughed and smiled as they danced. Luffy wasn't all that great at it but it was more than nothing. He was at least having a good time.
After Luffy let her go, Cabbage asked for a dance. She accepted and he drunkenly spun around with her. This was the most she had smiled and laughed since her family's death. It was the most fun she had had in a long time.
When most of the people were asleep and other were trying to stay awake for a bit longer, Ash found herself on the top deck of the ship. She was drinking her fifth up while staring out at the ocean. A smile graced her lips as she thought about everything that happened that day.
Ash had danced with almost everyone on the ship. Zoro was extremely drunk when she danced with him to the point he was laughing about everything that happened and had to hold onto her to stay standing. She danced with Luffy about three times. Robin even dances with her. Luffy's fan, Bartolomeo, was even excited to dance with her. He had wrapped his arms around her neck and twirled around with her while tears flowed down his cheeks. It was just a great day.
Footsteps made their way to her. She kept her eyes on the ocean. The person sat down next to her. "Has everyone fallen asleep by now?" Ash asked the person.
"Just about. I didn't see anyone awake when I left the deck." Her smile widened at the voice. She took another drink from her cup. She looked over to Law. "How were you able to handle all of them?"
Ash laughed. "I have danced with strangers before." She took another drink. "Where I come from, we had parades, carnivals, and other occasions that got people to dance with each other. I learned to dance with strangers because it was fun and exciting."
"Hm. I can't really handle most of the people on this ship."
"Like Luffy?"
"Yeah. Like him." An idea popped into her head. Ash set her cup down and stood up. She put her hands out for Law to grab. He looked at her with a confused expression. "What?"
"Give me your hands." Hesitantly, Law reached up and Ash grabbed his hands before pulling him up to stand. "There was only one person I didn't dance with today." Law's face turned a light shade of red. It made her happy. "Would you like to dance with me, Law?"
Noticing that he was shy, Ash smiled at him. He slowly nodded and allowed her to take him to another location. It was not a big space like the lower deck but it was the back of the top deck.
"Now. What kind of dances do you know?" Law raised an eyebrow. Ash sighed. "Like ballroom, polka, etc. Those dances."
"I was taught ballroom dancing when I was young," Law answered. Ash took one of his hands in hers and placed his other hand on her hip. She placed her free hand on his shoulder. Law's face turned a darker shade of red.
"Do you want to lead or should I?" It wasn't normal for the female to lead but if he wanted to, she would. Law agreed to lead. And thus started their dance
It was a lot calmer than the dances she did with the others. She remembered dancing with her father like this when she was small. She never touched the floor back then because he was a lot taller and he just held her the entire time. It made her happy.
"Ash-ya, you are crying. Are you okay? Should we stop?" Law's comment brought her back to the present. She shook her head.
"No. I'm okay." He nodded. "I was just thinking about the last time I danced like this."
"When was the last time?" He twirled them as they went.
"I was around eight or nine. My father started to dance with me." Law smiled. "I was too short and he had to hold me as we danced but it still made me happy." She laughed. "He was a good man. You would've like him." Her smile faded. "He's dead, though."
"Sorry to hear that." They passed the railing a few more times. She band to study Law. He was taller than her by a considerable amount but she could still look him in the eyes as he equal. He was a handsome man and worried abut her constantly even if he didn't wan to show it. She laughed again. "Why are you laughing?"
"I was just thinking." She didn't elaborate and Law never asked her to. She laid her head on his chest as they danced. He tensed before relaxing. He let her hand go and wrapped it around her with the other. She put both of her hands on his chest. Law placed his chin on her head. He then placed a kiss on her head and she smiled. I know a new reason to stay here. Maybe I will be happier staying here than in my world. I like it here. I'm sorry, Fox, but I want to stay here. I hope you have a good life without me.
Hah, hah, hah, hah. Finally. It is done. I hurt my head writing this. Meaning, I got a headache. Not that it happens a lot. I was just stressed writing this. Hope you like it. Please, tell me what you think. Have a fantastic day and Happy New Year! Love you all. Tatty-bye!