Chapter Five
Rebel Inside
Aries flinched at the loud shouting coming from the three men before her. A small bleat escaped her mouth as she covered her face with her hands.
"I mean he's a very mysterious person! Very few people in the crew know who he is. Even the marines have no clue!" Her voice was shrill with fear. She honestly thought they would hit her. That's what the Coyote pirates had done when she told them something they didn't want to hear.
"She's right. Take a look at his wanted poster." Nami pulled a sheet of paper from the newspaper sitting in her lawn chair. There on one of the back pages was an article with numerous pictures of wanted pirates. The biggest picture was the silhouette of a tall man, hidden by the shadows and smoke that surrounded him. The only spot of color was his bright yellow eyes. The poster read, "Wanted: Coyote. Dead or Alive. Bounty: 14,000,000 beri."
The timid sheep girl shrunk down at the sight of the poster and turned her back to Nami. Those eyes had haunted her nightmares for so many years. All she wanted was to be free of them.
"Someone in the crew has to know who he is." Usopp said, tugging at his bushy curls. "Do you know who would know and where they are?"
Aries shifted her weight to her left leg, lightly scuffing the toe of her brown boot against the wooden deck of the Merry. "The first mate knows." Her voice came out strained, as if something had a tight grip on her vocal cords. Her fingers tugging at the fleece gloves that covered her arms. "But Shin won't give up that information freely."
Her delicate hand rubbed up and down her left arm, slightly squeezing the pale skin, trying to will her heart to slow down its erratic beating.
"So we have to kick this guy Shin's ass first, then we can kick the captain's ass?" Luffy said, cocking his head to the side.
"That's what it sounds like." The green haired swordsman crossed his arms over his chest. "So," his sharp eyes slide over to the shivering blonde, "where do we find this guy?"
Her hands moved to grip the rough rope at her side, subconsciously keeping her only protection close by as she stared at the males in shock and shook her head, sending her wavy blonde hair into her face and over her shoulder. "You can't beat Shin. Shin has never lost a fight. Not ever." Her dark blue eyes filled with fear once again.
"We can beat him." Luffy said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
Nami walked towards Aries and laid a hand on her shoulder. When the younger girl looked up at her, the tangerine haired navigator gave her a reassuring smile. "They're stronger than they look, trust me. I didn't think anyone could beat Arlong, but they sure proved me wrong."
The sheep girl felt her eyes widen and she turned to look over the guys a few feet away. "They really defeated Arlong?" Her eyes passed over Luffy and Usopp, their face splitting grins made her lips twitch into a half smile of her own.
The long nosed sniper rubbed under his nose and winks. "It wasn't that hard."
Sanji lightly kicked the liar behind his knees, sending him tumbling to the deck. "You mostly just ran away. So don't make my sweet Aries-hime think you're some tough guy."
Luffy chuckled and put his arms behind his neck. "We never lose." He took a few steps forward, stopping directly in front of the enslaved girl. "Tell us where this Shin guy is and we will set you free."
Aries stared into his deep black eyes and felt the hot burn of tears behind her own blue ones once again. Her heart leapt in her chest and her hands tugged at the rope again. No matter how much her mind screamed that she couldn't trust them, that they were the same as all the other pirates she had met, she couldn't look away from the young captain's tanned face.
"I'm not exactly sure where he is, but I can find him for you. He always does the same thing when we reach a new island." As she spoke, her eyes traced the dark crescent scar under the dark haired boy's left eye. His wide grin came back as he closed his eyes. He laughed through his teeth and took her fleece covered wrist in his strong hand.
"Then let's go!" He tugged her to her feet and dragged her behind him to the railing of the Going Merry. Aries' grip on the rope around her fleece roll tightened, pulling it up to her body. "Come on Zoro, Sanji! Let's go!"
"Hold on, just a moment Luffy!" Nami shouted, stamping her foot. "You can't take both Zoro and Sanji with you! What are Usopp and I gonna do if some of the Coyote pirates come looking for the girl we stole from them?"
Luffy stopped mid-step and moved his free hand to rub his chin. His sudden halt caused Aries to slam into his toned body. The force caused her to fall backwards onto her butt.
"Yea, you and Usopp suck at fighting." He tilted his head back to look at his two strongest teammates. He opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by the chef.
"I'll stay behind to protect Nami-swan, but you better beat up the guy responsible for hurting my dear Aries-hime." Sanji grinned, giving the girl a flirty wink before dancing towards the orange haired navigator.
Luffy nodded and jerked Aries back to her feet. "All right! Let's go!"
Nami waved as the two ran towards the ship's railing. "We'll be ready to sail by the time you get back! Just gotta steal from-I mean be one step ahead of the Coyotes!" Her eyes had changed into shining beri signs. The long nosed sniper groaned in the background and rubbed his still swollen cheek.
Zoro jumped over the railing, landing on the dock below effortlessly. Luffy pulled the still shaking sheep girl to the railing and jumped over, taking her with him. A shrill bleat left her throat as they landed. Somehow she had managed to keep her feet under her. The force of the landing sent shock waves up her legs. She winced as gravity tried to pull her down, tugging painfully at her stitched side.
Shakily, she straightened up and yanked her wrist free of the rubber man's grip. He laughed as she tied the rope back around her upper torso. Zoro nodded his head towards the spiral of fabric before voicing his confusion.
"What is that?"
Aries gently rubbed her bandaged side, looking back over her left at the white, soft wool. "Wool. It's the only weapon I have."
"Wool," he scoffed. The swordsman didn't even try to hide the snide tone in his voice.
Aries glared up at him, pouting out her lower lip. "Sorry my devil fruit powers are not as cool as your captain's."
"What can you do with it?" Luffy's voice was laced with excitement, his eyes almost shining like stars.
The shy girl blinked before crossing her arms over her large breasts, palms touching her bare shoulders. She closed her blue eyes and spoke with a clear voice, "Wool-Wool Stretch." The wool covering her chest started to move against her skin, growing. The wool spool on her back also began to shift. The boys watched in awe as some wool moved from the spool on the girl's back to form racer back straps on the fleece tube top she had made from her dress. As she moved her hands from her shoulders, the material settled down, ceasing its jumping.
She opened her eyes, glancing at the pirates, gaging their reactions. The mint haired swordsman still had his stoic face, but his glare wasn't harsh anymore. Her eyes moved over to Luffy, whose eyes had turned to stars.
"Cool~! What else can you do?!" The young captain bounced on the balls of his feet, fists clenched excitedly in front of him.
Aries shifted her weight from one leg to the other nervously, and walked passed them, towards the main street. "Not much more. I can stretch and mold wool or fleece into any shape I need, but I can't create it. I have to have the material at hand. I can also harden it, I think. I haven't mastered that yet."
The two followed closely behind her as she led them down the main drag, Luffy still chattering about how cool her ability was. Her cheeks heated up and she tugged her bangs into her eyes, trying to hide her colored face. She certainly wasn't used to compliment or kindness. Once she calmed herself down, she starting looking left and right every so often, but never once stopped walking.
Zoro felt himself get annoyed with the lack of answers he had. "So how are you gonna find this guy, huh?"
The blonde girl looked back at him from over her shoulder. "Shin always does the same thing on every island we visit." She turned forward again and look a left down a side road. "He always visits a local bar and drinks non-stop for the day."
Luffy cocked his head to the side, confused. "So you know which bar he's in?"
"I have no clue which bar he's in." She stated, clenching and unclenching her fists.
"Then how the hell are you gonna find him?!" Zoro yelled, a vein throbbing at his temple. This girl was proving to be more trouble than she was worth in his opinion.
"Trust me, we'll all know which bar it is when we find it." Her voice held a matter-of-fact tone that signaled that the conversation was over.
"How well do you know this guy? I mean, you must be close if you know what he does in his free time." The pirate captain asked innocently, watching her wavy ponytail sway with her steps. The blonde stopped walking, her back straight as a board. Luffy hummed in confusion before walking around her. He bent over to look at her eyes that were hidden by her long bangs. Her blue orbs were hard and cold.
The rubber boy frowned. "Sheep-girl?"
"We aren't close. Far from it. I hate that man." She gripped her fists so tightly that her manicured nails cut into the soft skin of her palms. Aries let her head fall slightly, her soft bangs covering a majority of her face. "Shin is the one in charge of me, and since he found watching a slave boring, he would go out of his way to make my life hell. After every auction, he would wait longer and longer to come steal me back. I lost count of how many times I was almost killed or… worse." She trailed off a little before speaking again, "But that wasn't enough entertainment for him. During the first year I was with the Coyote crew, I tried to escape every night."
The girl walked a few steps to her right and leaned her back against the rough stone of the building there. She unclenched her fists and inspected the many crescent cuts in her palms before continuing.
"Shin got tired of chasing me down, so he came up with his brilliant idea. He would fight me once a month, and if I could beat him, I would be set free. He called it my monthly Freedom Fight. Of course, I was never able to beat him. I mean, I was only 12 when they started. But to make it even better for him, when I lost, I had to spend the rest of that month in seastone shackles so I wouldn't be able to try and escape again. So I basically have spent the last 4 years in energy draining shackles, almost insuring that I'd never beat him."
Luffy frowned deeply, crossing his arms in front of him. He watched the blonde girl before him rub her eyes with her hands. He could feel Zoro shift beside him. His swordsman friend was also frowning at the girl, but his eyes were angry. The dark haired boy felt the same. How dare someone prey on someone weaker! Now they really wanted to kick this guy's ass. Suddenly, a bell went off in the rubber boy's head.
"Sheep-girl, what's seastone?" He stuck his index finger back in his ear, scratching.
Aries lifted an eyebrow at him and placed her hands on her hips. "You're a devil fruit user and you don't know about seastone?"
"Nope." Simple answer from a seemingly simple boy.
She resisted the urge to deeply sigh before she spoke. "Seastone is a rare natural substance that gives off the same wavelength as the sea. So its effect on devil fruit users is the same as being under water. We can't move. It's horrible." As she spoke, she rubbed her fingers against her wrists, massaging the fading bruises hiding under her fleece arm warmers.
"Let's keep looking," she said coldly, pushing off the wall and continuing down the road. The boys followed silently, processing the information.
The group walked on a few more minutes in silence. They turned down another side street. Farther down the street was a crowd of people standing around outside a building.
"I wonder what's going on over there." Luffy had pushed his precious straw hat down to hang around his neck.
Aries stopped walking, watching the crowd with wary eyes. Zoro and the rubber boy followed suit.
"This the place?" The swordsman placed a hand on the sheath of his sword.
"Maybe…" The girl took a few steps closer to the crowd. A few seconds later, a body broke through a window and flew into a pile of crates across the street. Aries let out a frightened bleat and covered her head with her arms. Zoro drew his sword, ready to battle, and Luffy raised his fists. The crowd around the building's entrance scattered, screaming.
Aries slowly straightened her back, her hands clenched tightly against her breasts. "Yeah, this is it." Her eyes were locked on the smashed crates and injured body of the man.
"I thought you said that Shin guy was strong. He can't be too strong if he gets thrown through windows." Luffy said matter-of-factly, sticking a finger in his ear.
The blonde walked past the boys once again, walking up to the bar's entrance. "That wasn't Shin, but I bet you 100 beris Shin is the one that sent him flying."
Zoro grunted and pushed his captain to follow the wavy haired girl. The dark haired boy stumbled slightly before catching his balance.
The inside of the bar was dingy and dirty with dim lighting, giving the room a hazy yellowish glow. Aries scrunched up her nose in disgust. It reeked of old alcohol and vomit. Her eyes began to water from the awful smell as she looked around the room for the brown haired man. She felt the straw hats come up beside her.
"See him?" the swordsman asked, hand on the hilt of his sword.
Her blue eyes locked on the broad back of a man hunched over the bar. She nodded slightly, her wavy ponytail bouncing with her movement. "Yeah, that's him. Leaning over the bar." She walked a few steps closer and pushed her shoulders back, willing her shaking body to calm down. "Shin!"
Her soft voice sounded loud in the silent room. The man sat up and turned to face the source of the voice. His short brown hair was wet with booze, some stray droplets running down his face, following the pale lines of old scars. His hard eyes were glossy with intoxication. His thin lips formed a lopsided grin.
"Lamb! I see you were able to get away without my help this time. Shame though, we won't be able to rob the fool. Heard he's bid almost beat your high score." His words were slurred and he could barely sit up straight. He leaned back against the bar, resting his elbows on the polished wood. His glossy eyes slid to look over the two men standing closely behind her. "I see you made some new friends."
Luffy took a few steps forward, stepping in front of the blonde girl. "I'm here to kick your ass."
Loud laughter filled the room. Shin slumped forward on his stood as his chuckles racked his body. He slowly got up from his seat, wobbling as he fought to stay standing. "And why would you wanna do that?" His words lost some of the drunken slur as he studied the three teens standing before him.
"To set Sheep-girl free." Luffy pulled his fist back, ready to strike. The older male laughed again, stumbling a few steps to the left.
"Oh really? So you think a scrawny twig and a wannabe swordsman can beat me? Good luck." Shin chuckled again before finishing the beer in his hand.
The dark haired pirate growled and launched himself at the drunk man. Aries raised her hand to stop him, but it was too late. In the blink of an eye, Luffy had smashed into a cluttered table in the corner of the bar. Zoro drew his white sword and dashed at Shin.
Time seemed to slow down as the young blonde watched her charge almost dance out of the way of the slashes, his fluid movement impossible to predict. The swordsman noticed this and stopped swinging his blade. In the split second of his hesitation, Shin punched him in the jaw, sending him flying into the wall behind the bar.
Aries winced at the sound of shattering glass and the painful, dull thud of Zoro's body hitting the wooden floor. Her icy glare remained on the large man before her, watching his water-like motions. The large man laughed loudly.
"I told y'all that you were no match for me!"
He turned back to the girl, wiping his face with the red bandana that had been tied around his upper arm. A deep frown tugged at her pink lips.
I knew he's unbeatable. Well, if he's finally gonna kill me, I'm going down fighting.
The skin around her horns began to itch slightly as her eyes glanced over to the direction Luffy had flown in. He was slowly pulling his head out of the hole it had made in the wall. When it finally popped free, he turned to Shin, angry.
He opened his mouth to yell, but stopped when Aries raised her hand. The itch around her horns slowly became a dull burning sensation as the rough bone spiraled farther out of her head. Her face was blank as the bone stopped growing. As the burn faded, a cocky smirk stretched across her pink, pouty lips. She shifted her weight to her right leg, resting her hands on her hips.
The Straw Hat captain watched on, confused, but silent. Behind the bar, Zoro got back to his feet. He removed his black bandana from his head, and tied it back on his arm.
"Guess this is her fight now." he muttered, eyeing her larger horns with interest.
"Well, well, well. If it isn't Ram. It's been a while." Shin raised his fist up, moving fluidly from side to side.
"It's barely been a month, you oaf. Are you ready for our fight? I don't think you've fully recovered from last time." Her voice portrayed the same smug attitude that was now plastered on her face.
The brown haired man threw his head back and laughed. "If I remember correctly, our last fight ended with you begging for your life."
"Tch. You must have rocks for brains. I would never beg for my so-called life." Her words fell from her lips like poison as she spit at him. "But today, my life will begin. Today, I will be free."
Shin matched her cocky grin and assumed a fighting stance. "So are we following our usual rules?"
Aries pulled her brown boots and socks off, and bounced a few times on the balls of her now bare feet. "Same rules, different reward. When I win, not only will I be free of your ugly ass, you will tell me and my new friends were the Captain is."
Her opponent's face darkened, his aura turning serious. "Then I guess I shouldn't play around this time."
"Doesn't matter, because this time, you will be the one begging for your pathetic life." Aries said, her cocky grin stretched wider, her white teeth shining in the dingy light. She moved her left foot back, taking a fighting stance, and raised her fists in front of her face. She bounced her weight from one leg to the other, keeping her body loose.
"Enough talk. Time for me to finally beat you!"