A/N: So I know it has been forever, but I've been working on fixing all the previous chapters into 3rd person point of view. I'm not quite finished, but I decided to just go ahead and post the next chapter, because its not fair to you guys for me to make you wait when I already have it ready to go. Just know, that once I finish, we'll be back to a regular posting schedule, but until then, it's iffy.

I've got about the first 30 chapters done, so there's about 14 left to fix.

Thanks for reading, and hope you enjoy!

The scream was shrill and the members of the Straw Hat pirate crew all woke in a start at the sound.

"Whaasat?" Chopper asked sleepily, as Usopp gasped, bolting upright next to him.

"Is there a killer? What happened?!" he demanded.

"Is everyone all right?" Zoro asked. The moon was out but didn't provide much light as he looked around the glowing embers of what had once been their campfire, looking at each his comrades.

"Don't worry ladies, I'll protect you!" Sanji said as he jumped up, alert.

"Calm down," Nami groused. "It was just Kia," she added, reaching over to shake her and help her friend wake up.

"Kia?" Luffy asked, as he came over. "What's wrong with her?" he asked, looking as she tossed and turned on the sand, and he reached down to pick her up in a hug and holding her still, wanting to make the look of pain on her face go away.

Nami sat up now, on her blanket, sure that they wouldn't be going back to sleep any time soon. "She has nightmares," she told the others.

"Pretty regularly too," Robin added, "though she has said that they are getting better."

Sanji looked thoughtful as he sat back down on his own blanket, watching as Usopp added more wood to their fire. "This is why she is usually able to keep me company in the early mornings?" he asked. "She always just said she didn't need much sleep."

"I asked her why she was so tired the other day, and she said she had stayed up reading," Chopper said, upset.

"To be fair, doctor," Robin said, giving him a small smile. "Once she wakes, she usually does read, so as not to disturb us."

Luffy didn't speak, but his hold on Kia tightened, as she had woken up panting and had gripped him like she was worried he'd disappear.

Kia listened to those around her, knowing that though she had sworn the girls to secrecy, her secret was now out. The worst part was, she had actually thought she was getting over it. Ever since Navarone, she had been sleeping fairly well, with only a sporadic nightmare. But this one, had by far been the worst.

She gave a sigh, letting her grip loosen on Luffy, and he moved to set her back down, sitting beside her and holding her hand. "Kia?" he asked, worriedly. "What happened?"

Kia rubbed her other hand over her face, trying to get rid of the queasy feeling the nightmare gave her. "Just a nightmare," she said. "Sorry to wake you all up."

"Tell us," Luffy demanded.

Kia looked at him, uncertain, and Nami spoke up. "It's not a bad idea," she said, giving Kia a look. She had been trying to get Kia to tell her about the nightmares since she learned of them.

"It will help," Chopper added in, coming over to cuddle next to Kia on her other side. "You don't have to go through it alone, Kia."

She sighed, and looked around, all of her friends looking at her expectantly, so she decided to go ahead, and tell them the story. After all, they had all shared their own with her, even though they didn't know that she already knew what they went through before they met her. Well, except for Robin, she thought. She hasn't said anything, but I'll get her trust soon.

"Okay, but let's get the fire going, and breakfast started," Kia said. "And feel free to do anything else as I talk, it's kind of a long story."

"All right!" Luffy cheered. "Kia tells the best stories!" he said, even as he patted her back.

"You may not like this one as much," she muttered.

She started by telling them of landing on Drum island, suddenly away from her sisters, and not knowing how it had happened. Of finding herself in the mountains, in the snow in her shorts and t-shirt, passing out and how she woke to find herself in Zachary's home, having been rescued.

"Oh, I wish I had known, I would have thanked him for rescuing you," Luffy said seriously.

"What?" Kia asked, stopping in confusion.

"It's my job as your brother, to thank someone who saved you," Luffy said, turning his head to look at her. "Next time we go to that island, remind me, so I can."

"Uh… okay," she said. "But I don't know if he'll want to be thanked for it," she added.

"Why not?" Chopper asked.

"Well, it turned out badly for him," she said sadly. She continued, telling them of meeting Judith, and hearing that Zachary had gone to King Wapol and begged for her to be seen by a doctor, how he refused to leave, and eventually had been thrown in jail with Dalton.

"That man went to a lot of trouble to help you, Kia," Usopp said in surprise.

"Yeah," she replied. "I always felt bad, because I barely knew him, and once he got out of jail, he didn't want anything to do with me."

"Why?" Nami asked. "That seems strange after risking so much for you. Was he mad about being in jail?"

"No, not really," she answered. "You see, Judith was his best friend…" she continued her story, telling about going on adventures with Judith, spending almost every day with her, and becoming close with her. She told how Judith had managed to get Dr. Kureha to come help her when she had broken her leg, and had told the carpenter in town about it, and had him make crutches for her.

Chopper listened happily, glad that Kia had had such a wonderful friend, and wondered why they hadn't met her. He stopped suddenly as his memory finally put the pieces together, and he realized where Kia's broken leg had come from. He remembered going with Doctorine to take the cast off her leg. She had been staying with Dalton, and he had remembered her sadness that hung around her like a cloud, though he didn't know why.

He looked up at Kia, feeling absolutely awful, and he took his arm from hers, sitting dejectedly next to her, no longer cuddling.

Kia continued her story, looking down to her left and seeing Chopper with his head down, and felt bad for telling such a sad story, thinking it was obviously affecting him.

She hesitated a little, once she got to the part of meeting Blackbeard, and how he had shot Judith, and burned down her house. Her friends gasped, and Luffy's hand tightened on hers, and she could see the anger on their faces change to sadness as she told of how she had tried to save her friend, and failed.

Kia looked up, and saw Zoro looking back at her. He gave her an inquisitive look and a nod, and she steeled herself before continuing. "That's not the end of it," she said hesitantly.

"It's not?" Luffy asked in surprise.

"No… uh, we saw Blackbeard again."

"What?" he demanded. "Why didn't you tell me?!"

"When?" Sanji asked, thinking back.

"At Mocktown," she said quietly.

"The huge guy, at the bar," Zoro said as he had before. "With the pies."

"Let me get this straight," Nami said, rubbing her head. "This is the guy that Ace is chasing, right?" she asked, and Kia nodded. "SO! Not only does he destroy the island, he kills your friend! And then you see him again, and he comes chasing after Luffy for his bounty... and you don't think to TELL US THIS?!"

"Uh… yes?" Kia replied, worried about the anger on Nami's face.

"I get it," Luffy said calmly, and they all whirled to him.

"I thought you'd be the most angry here," Nami said in surprise.

"I wish you had told us Kia, because then we could have kicked his butt! But… I'm not worried about it. Ace promised he was going to get him, so he will," he nodded firmly at her.

Sanji spoke up next. "And that's why you wanted to leave the crew," he said quietly, staring at the fire. "You didn't want anyone else to die." Kia nodded. "But Kia, my sweet, you also have to believe in us. Alone, we can't do everything, but together?" he said, giving her a smile. "We can handle anything that comes."

Zoro gave the chef a look, but turned back to Kia with a smirk. "Training and becoming stronger will also help. Feeling in control will stop you from feeling weak."

"That's true," Robin added, and Kia turned to look at her. "I'm wondering, do you have a sketch of Judith? I'm curious to see her."

Kia shook her head. "I haven't been able to draw her yet."

Robin nodded sagely. "I would suggest that you do. Not only to have it for when you are remembering her, but also I believe it will help to change your guilt into grief. Then you may be able to process it better."

Kia thought about that, and eventually nodded. "So is that what the nightmares are then?" Robin asked. "Reliving it all?"

"Sort of," Kia said, embarrassed. "I do relive it, but there is always something that makes it worse. Judith cursing me as she dies, telling me it's all my fault. Zachary trying to kill me for getting his friend killed. Dalton kicking me out, or Kureha not treating me, so I end up with a limp." Usopp snorted, and she smiled briefly. "Blackbeard killing Ace, or actually recognizing me, and killing all of you…" she muttered.

"Hey."

Kia turned back to look at Luffy.

"I said I would protect you, right?" he asked.

"Yeah."

"Then I will, I promise. From Blackbeard, or pirates, or marines, or monsters! We're family, right?!"

"Yeah," she said again, though she was smiling this time.

"We all are!" he said loudly, looking around at his crew. "And we protect each other, right?"

"Right!" they all answered, except Robin who merely looked thoughtful.

"Right," he said again with a nod. "Sanji! Breakfast time! I'm starving!"

"I know it's a little choppy right now, but I still think you can do it Kia," Sanji said, handing her the tray. She could feel how much lighter it was compared to other days, and smiled back at Sanji.

"I'm definitely going to do it today Sanji," she said, moving her left arm around her back, and starting out of the kitchen with the tray of food. Coming out the door and over to the stairs, she heard Usopp call out.

"Careful Kia, the waves are making it difficult today! Take your time!"

She smiled at the encouragement, and at hearing Luffy cheering her on in the background. Once stable on a step, she glanced over, and seeing Chopper there as well, looking sad, she made a mental note to talk to him later. He had been avoiding her for the past two days, and she had no idea what was going on.

Kia listened to Usopp and took her time, making her way down the stairs, wobbling a little, but feeling much better than she had previously. Her training was obviously helping- the extra strength helping to hold the tray steady as she made her way down the steps. She grinned as her foot landed on the deck, and the boys cheered, then gasped, and laughed good naturedly as she fell over.

Looking up, Kia noted she was sprawled in front of Zoro, who was sleeping against the mast. His eye peeked open and he smirked at her.

"Almost got it Kia," he said, and she grinned. He had recently gone back to calling her Kia after using her full name for awhile, and it still made her happy to hear it. "Give the tray back to Curly Brow, and come back for training."

Kia jumped up, not discouraged in the slightest. She walked back up the stairs, meeting Sanji at the railing, as he had come out with Robin's and Nami's food. He took the tray from her fluidly, and moved over to deliver his own. Kia went back down the stairs, almost tripping again in her haste, but made it safely back to Zoro.

He was standing, and he handed Kia her escrima sticks as she walked up. "Hey Luffy!" he called. "Feel like helping Kia train today?"

"YEAH!" Luffy cheered, jumping over to them. "Are we playing dodge?" he asked.

"Close," Zoro said, looking back at Kia. "I guess we'd call this block, instead of dodge," he said with a smirk.

"So use my sticks to block?" she asked in clarification.

"Yes," he replied. "Use the same swings you've been practicing. Dodging is for when you can't block. Blocking should be your first choice."

"Oy!" Sanji called as he came closer. "Dodging is an essential skill to have muscle head!"

"Blocking is much more important!"

"And if she loses her weapon? What then?"

"Blocking is more powerful! Dodging is weaker!"

"Whaat?! You wanna go?!"

Luffy laughed at their argument, and Usopp smirked. "Well, we need to see both to judge," he said. "Ready Luffy?" he asked. "We'll need a gatling."

"You got it!" Luffy said. "Gum-gum Gatling!" he called, and Sanji and Zoro stopped fighting immediately to block and dodge Luffy's attacks. Once Luffy stopped, they turned to each other, ready to fight again when Kia yelled.

"You're both right!"

They stopped and looked over at her. "You're right," she said again. "I need to block, and dodge. There's a time and a place for each, right?" she asked, and mulishly, they both eventually nodded. "Okay then, perhaps if I alternate between blocking and dodging? Ready Luffy?" she asked, not giving them time to answer. "Go!"

Hours later, Kia and Luffy were stopped by Nami yelling out, "Hey, you're getting pretty good with those sticks!"

Kia looked up at the railing where she stood. "Yeah? Go get your staff, and let's have a spar!" she called.

"No way!" Nami replied with a laugh. "Besides, Sanji said to call you all for lunch!"

"FOOD!" Luffy hollered, grabbing Kia and stretching his arm to the rail. He shot them up, and Kia yelled as they sailed over the ship and into the water behind it.

"Man overboard!" came the shout from the ship as they fell, and Kia gripped Luffy tightly to ensure he wouldn't drown.

After being helped onto the ship, Kia laid on the deck and panted.

"Sorry Kia," Luffy groaned from beside her.

"No problem," she replied. "I'm just glad I was there to keep you from drowning."

"Hey, yeah, Kia!" Usopp pointed out. "You saved Luffy's life just now."

"That's true…" she said looking over at Luffy. "You know what that means…"

Luffy pouted. "I have to get water for your shower…" he mumbled.

"And?" she asked.

He gave her a petulant look. "Not the jacket!" he said.

"Yep!" she laughed, heading for her room to get it.

"You know you are adorable when you pout, right?" she asked Luffy as she tightened the straps on the life jacket.

"I hate this thing," he said grumpily.

"I know, but that will teach you not to go shooting off into the water," she replied. "And if you do, this thing will help you stay afloat until we can get there."

"Hmph," he grumbled.

"Well, I know one thing that will cheer you up," she said with a smile, and pulling him with her. "It's still lunch time."

He grinned suddenly and started running. "Food food food!"

Later that day, Kia spent some time with her sketch book, trying Robin's suggestion of drawing Judith. She knew she was a good artist, but there was some sort of block that prevented her from drawing her friend. Eventually she just sketched out Judith's eyes, and the look they had when she smiled. It wasn't much, but it made her feel a little better.

Looking over as she heard Nami call to unfurl the sails, Kia noted that the waves had become much larger than they had been even minutes before.

"What's going on?" Usopp called. "Can't we even have one day to rest?"

"I'm afraid it's back to work," Nami replied. "These waves are a little too strange for comfort!"

Kia wasn't certain what was coming, but if Nami said strange, she should expect the worst. Heading downstairs, she put away her drawing supplies, and headed back up to help out.

As she made it back to the deck, she was surprised to see the boys were all rowing as fast as they could, and the sails were furled again. Looking behind the ship, and expecting Marines, her mouth fell open at the sign of a giant wave heading for the ship.

"There's something in the water!" Robin called above her, and Kia glanced up to the crow's nest. "It may be debris? But it looks large!"

Kia ran to the stern, looking back as best she could. "They look like some kind of animal! Like… Sea monkeys!" she shouted over her shoulder. She gasped as she saw another ship being sucked in to the wave.

"Row!" she heard Usopp yell, and the ship lurched forward.

Once the wave crashed, Kia was glad to see that they were far enough ahead that the Merry could handle the water without a problem. Nami kept the sails up, and directing the ship, trying to move away from the sea monkeys without going too far off course.

"It's the long way around, but hopefully safer," she said to Kia, once Kia had joined her again.

"I hope you're right," Kia replied. "That other ship in the water didn't stand a chance against that wave."

"I'm not sure they could have avoided it," Nami said, her brow furrowed. "No sails, and it looked as if no one was in charge either. I'm not sure how they even made it this far like that."

"Hmm, that's strange," Kia replied, realizing now what story the pieces where pointing to. "Anyone experienced in sailing wouldn't dare go out without sails."

"Exactly," Nami said. "Unless they were desperate?" She looked out to the water. "But what kind of situation would cause you to shove off without your sails?" she asked.

"I have a really bad feeling about this…" Usopp said as he joined them.

"When do you not?" Sanji asked, as the rest of the crew came over.

"They were probably attacked, and the sails were burned or shredded," Zoro added, from where he sat next to the stairs.

"No, the ship looked like it hasn't seen trouble at all," Kia replied.

"Well regardless," Nami added, "the waves and wind have calmed down. We must be entering into an island's climate zone.

"Really?" Usopp asked. "Hey! Robin! See anything?" he called up to the crow's nest.

"We've been heading toward an island for some time now," she called back.

"WHAT?!" Luffy and Usopp yelled.

"Why didn't you say anything sooner?" Usopp complained. "Whenever you first see an island, you're supposed to say this!" He turned to Luffy.

"Land! I see land! YAHOO!" Luffy yelled out.

"Now, you're turn!" Usopp told Robin.

"However, the fog is rather thick," Robin continued.

"Don't ignore me!" Usopp yelped.

"Fog?" Nami muttered. "We'd better be careful then. Hey, Chopper!" she called out. "Keep forward watch!"

"Aye aye!" Chopper answered, and headed for the front of the ship.

"Rob-in!" Luffy yelled. "Do you know how long we've been waiting to see an island?!"

"My mistake, I'll be more mindful in the future," Robin said.

"Well, if you mean it…" Luffy mused. "Okay then."

Kia leaned over onto the railing, just enjoying the interactions of the crew. These people were so amazing together, especially because they were so different from each other.

The ship moved into the thick fog, and Luffy shouted out about getting the anchor ready. Kia moved, following the rest of the crew towards the front of the ship. As she climbed the stairs after Sanji, she heard a thump behind her, and looked back to see Usopp on his knees, and clutching his chest.

"OY, Chopper!" Sanji called, leaning back to sit on the railing behind him, and looking over his shoulder at Usopp. "Usopp's got "Can't Go On the Island" disease acting up again!"

Chopper came running over, and with a grin, looked down at Usopp. "Well, there's no cure for that!" he said, and giggled, causing Kia to snicker.

"Hey! Check it out! It's all grass as far as I can see!" Luffy yelled, as the island became visible. Zoro timed his anchor release, causing the ship to stop just a few feet from the coast.

"Nice one," Kia said, and he gave her a nod.

"Do you suppose anyone lives here?" Robin asked.

"It looks really dull," Sanji said.

"Let's go!" Luffy called, jumping from the ship, followed by Chopper and Usopp.

"Hey!" Nami yelled, as they started rolling on the grass, the rest of the crew watching them. "Why do they just barrel off without a care?" she asked.

"With how far we can see, it's obvious there's no danger," Zoro said. "Let's go have a look around."

The others nodded, and took some time to gather their supplies, or rather what they would need to gather new supplies from the island. Baskets to gather fruit, ropes bags to cart back anything they found, as well as supplies needed to set up camp.

By the time they disembarked, Luffy, Usopp and Chopper were off past a rolling hill, and they could no longer see them.

"Hopefully they haven't gotten into any trouble," Nami worried.

"They're just exploring, don't fret," Sanji said consolingly.

Kia turned at a sudden boom, and the other four turned as well. Large claws attached by chains to an extremely large ship we shot out toward the island, and landed on either side of the Merry.

"They just trapped us in!" Sanji said in shock.

"What are they planning?" Nami asked.

Kia looked over at Robin, who didn't seem shocked to see the ship, and she wondered why.

"Who are you guys?" Zoro asked menacingly, once the ship docked, and they could see the crew up on the deck.

"If it's a fight you want," Sanji added, "come on down here."

"WE ARE…" the crew said in unison, causing quite the shout, "THE FOXY PIRATES!" One man stepped forward. "Don't be so hasty! We don't want a fight, we want a showdown!"

"Huh?" the older straw hats replied.

Nami glanced at Kia, hoping she knew what was going on. "The fight's already started?" she asked.

"That's right!" The foxy pirate explained loudly. The fight starts once one captain agrees to the other captain's challenge. So right now, the captains are squaring off. All you can do is sit and wait!"

"I don't like this," Zoro said with a sneer. "I'll take you all on, here and now!"

"You don't know anything, do you?" Sanji asked. "It's not an actual fight, more like a sports match between pirate crews."

"Exactly," Robin agreed. "Remember Pirate Island? Where we began the Dead End Race?" she asked, and Zoro nodded. "Supposedly the game originated there. Anyway, the main purpose of a Davy Back Fight, is to plunder desirable members from another pirate's crew."

"Pirates plundering other pirates?" Nami gasped.

"Yes," Robin agreed.

"Since you're clueless, I'll tell you how it works," the foxy pirate started.

"No need!" Kia called out. "I know the rules!" She turned back to the other four. "C'mon guys, let's find Luffy, and I'll explain on the way," she said more quietly. "These Foxy Pirates kind of creep me out."

The others nodded, and the five of them began walking in the direction Luffy had gone. "So, Kia? You know what's happening?" Nami asked.

"Yeah," Kia replied. "Basically the captains agree to a set number of matches. The winning crew in each match can then decide to take any crew member, or the other crew's jolly roger. The crew member taken has to swear an oath of loyalty to the new captain."

"So if you win, you can strengthen your crew, but if you lose, you can end up with nothing," Robin said, and Kia nodded.

"Might as well be betting your life," Zoro muttered.

"Exactly," Kia replied. "The problem here is, while the Foxy pirates will want some of our crew, Luffy will definitely not want any of them, or even to take their jolly roger. To Luffy, it will just be a game."

"Our crew may be small, but we're all friends," Nami agreed. "I wouldn't want random people joining us, even if they did have a shipwright worth taking."

"The other problem," Kia continued, "is that in the matches, there are specific rules, and literally anything else is fair."

"So if the rule doesn't specifically say something, then it's legal?" Robin asked, her eyebrows up.

"Yes," Kia replied with a sigh. "Not to mention that everyone involved are pirates, which means cheating."

"This is way too complicated for a simple game," Zoro said, annoyed.

"Let's find Luffy, and hope he hasn't agreed to this," Nami said, rushing off.

BANG! BANG!

The five of them stopped as the guns went off, and Nami turned back, dejected. "Does that mean what I think it does?" she asked. The other four nodded back, and she hung her head.