insatiable [in-sey-shuh-buhl]
1. not satiable; incapable of being satisfied or appeased
The scenery blurred by. Plants and flowers whirred as someone ran down a steep hill. Something above the trees cried out, egging the frightened person to run faster. Their footsteps thudded noisily against the earthy ground, making the surface beneath their feet sound hollow. A shadow loomed over their small and slim stature. Distracted by the sudden shade, their foot snagged on a root, tripping them.
A shrill scream rang through the air, followed by a loud roar. Lavender's brown eyes widened as she rolled on to her back. The large reptilian beast above her, snorted a puff of warm air st her. It reared, and then opened its large jaws, revealing large, yellowing teeth roughly around the length of her arm. It roared once more and plunged its head down. She screamed again, shielding her face while clutching a brown bulky rucksack with her other arm.
Though just as death was about to knock on her door, the large dinosaur had become distracted as something hit its leg. Pausing, it stood up straight and looked for the source. A rock was thrown from somewhere in deep in the bushes, hitting the beast. It roared, and then turned to the fauna. Lavender, seizing the opportunity, slowly began to crawl away. She remained on her back, keeping her frightened eyes on the predator.
Suddenly, a hand clasped over her mouth, and with a muffled cry, she was pulled into the undergrowth. She trashed, though an arm wrapped around her waist, and a familiar voice reached her ears.
"Lavender, Lavender!" the voice hissed as quietly as possible, "it's okay, it's me."
"P-penguin?" she stammered, keeping her voice as low as she could. Placing a hand over the one on her mouth, she pulled her crew mate's hand away. She tilted her head back, which now pressed against his chest, "it's you!"
Relief flooded her trembling body, and she found herself able to breath easy once more. Shifting the sack that rest on her stomach, she sat up and turned to face the man.
"I got it," she whispered, motioning to the object in her arms.
Penguin nodded and then guided her away from the dinosaur. Though the question remained- what had distracted the dinosaur? The pirate leading her informed her that it had been Shachi and his nephew, Ronald. Remembering the slingshot wielding hotheaded child, Lavender nodded. So they were all safe after the temple had collapsed. Thank goodness,she thought.
Over the past few days she had become familiar with the rest of the crew members. Ronald, the young boy was the son of Shachi's brother, and the older, balding man was Shachi's uncle. He was simply called 'Old Man' by the others, though both Law and Lavender preferred to call him by his given name, Sam. The young lad wearing the beanie was quite the rambunctious being, and could be often heard yelling at the machinery or arguing with both his uncles [1].
Sam was a mirthful and polite old man. Lavender liked his company, and he often made her think of home. Perhaps it was how he behaved and carried himself- how he was always smiling and laughing, gladly sharing stories of when he had still been in "his prime." He was the one who controlled ship and did most of the repairs. Well, the more complicated ones that is. Most of the fixing and maintenance was done by either Shachi, Penguin, or Ronald, but mainly Shachi and Penguin since Ronald had the tendency to beat the pipes or pressure meter with a wrench just to "get them to work."
Speaking of the boy, it was him that Lavender had the most difficulty getting acquainted to. The boy had the tendency to ask personal and sometimes inappropriate questions, questions that she preferred not to answer or did not have an answer to.. She remembered that the morning after she had made them breakfast for them very first time, she had been busy making pancakes when Ronald had appeared in the kitchen…
"'ey, cook! Ye' sweet on th' capt'n o' sumthing'?"
The question had come out of no where unexpectedly that she had almost almost dropped the frying pan. Her cheeks burned as she sputtered a reply that could have been summarized simply by the word 'no'. She then proceeded to 'shoo' the boy out of the kitchen, inquiring weakly if he had any chores to do. Lucky for her, he did. Where on earth did the boy get that notion? Just because she was a girl meant that she was "sweet" on the captain? The thought made Lavender huff. N-not that Law wasn't aesthetically pleasing, or anything!
Lavender flushed at the memory as Penguin grabbed her wrist and pulled her to her feet. He led her cautiously through the plants, occasionally stopping to listen. The large reptile that had chased Lavender earlier roared vaguely somewhere in the distance, and a large, prehistoric bird squawked somewhere above their heads. The young strawberry blonde flinched. Why did her first official adventure as a member of the Heart Pirates have to be on a large island mainly populated by monsters that should be long dead? What puzzled her even more, was the fact that there was an actual settlement at the coast of the jungle like island.
A handful of days after they'd made quick getaway from Hickorytown, they'd come across another island. Law explained that it was their last island in the North Blue and the stop before they reached Loguetown.
They had done a bit of shopping when they had first arrived at the island. The locals were friendly, despite the large amount of pirates coming in and out of the ports and hovering at their waters. The welcoming was warm and their time shopping was pleasant. They had managed to get all the supplies they needed, including several things for the kitchen and pantry, and some clothes for Lavender that fitted warmers climates. Which brought her attention to what she was wearing at the moment. She had the pleasure of going clothes shopping with Penguin, Shachi, and Rodney. Penguin and Shachi had argued between two different outfits for her to wear during their stay in the island. Lavender protested- rather meekly, mind you, against both outfits, until Rodney stepped in, handed her a gray shirt, green shorts that reached the mid section of her thighs, brown boots that reached the mid-area of her shins, and dark brown suspenders.
She had no qualms about the outfit, though the shorts were a bit too short in her opinion, but didn't say anything. They fit her well, though the suspenders pulled on the pants, making her feel uncomfortable. But alas, that should be the least of her worries…
Letting Penguin guide her, Lavender tried re-adjusting the sack in her arm, though the uneven ground and a branch lying on her path, caused her to drop the item. She squeaked, halted, pulling Penguin back and reached for the sack.
A loud screech not too far from them was enough to drain the color from their faces. Penguin looked pale, whereas Lavender looked sickly pale.
"Run, run, run!" Penguin ushered, his eyes wide as the earth beneath them shook and the large plant leaves around them rustled violently.
Snatching the treasure, Lavender followed Penguin who still held onto her wrist. The roar was heard again, but this time it was disturbingly close. Just in time- Penguin pulled Lavender to the side as something big and black leaped out of the plants and stood right in front of them. Turning around, the duo ran back the way they had came from, with this large monstrous animal chasing them. It had two large powerful teeth coming down from the top row of it's mouth, much like a mouse or a rat, and it's body was built like a bear's, though the lower part of it smaller than the upper one, like a gorilla's.
"S-split up!" Penguin called out over his shoulder.
Lavender's brown eyes widened and panic flashed in them.
"What?" she cried out, "n-no! Penguin!"
With a startled cry, the strawberry blonde stumbled to the side as she was pushed, and then fell into what looked like a bramble bush. She watched in horror as the beast chased Penguin until they vanished from sight. Despite her body protesting, she picked herself up and staggered out on the path. Her eyes were still wide, though this time, they were glassy- as if she was about to cry. And cry she did. She bit her lip as the first tear slid down her cheek. Reaching out with one hand, she wiped it away, only to have more tears drip down her face..
Sniffling, Lavender readjusted her grip on the object in her hands. I'm alone,the thought seemed so foreign, but as it sunk in and realization hit her, she whimpered:
"I'm alone."
A strangled laugh slipped through her lips.
"I'm alone," she whispered, voice trembling, "oh God, I'm alone."
Shaking her head she sniffled again and wiped the tears away. Lavender decided to do the only thing that came to mind… She chased after Penguin and the man eating monster.
[1] Since Ronald's father is Shachi's brother, and that Old Man Sam is their uncle, that would also make him Ronald's great-uncle.
