Title: Lost Things
Word Count: 1679
*Recap: Aislynn and Redd finished off some slave traders and stole their boat—as well sold it as they took up Odette to continue their journey in search for more crew members, and thus One Piece.
Rating: T
Genre: Action, Adventure & Humor
Warnings (in this chapter): Language and violence.
Disclaimer: blah
A/N: Refer to chapter 5.5's A/N (so click that "previous chapter button-or whatever-the-hell-it's-called". Do it, NOW) for my little rant and why you should shoot me. :D
Tension hung in the air of the two people that stood in the street. The silence was deafening, but both refused to make a sound; none would surrender and admit defeat. Without a single peep or a glance to each other, they split up: one scaled the building to the left, while the other dashed through the streets, lifting every possible hideout.
Aislynn scanned the small town, jumping onto roofs and perusing each street and building to the best of her ability. On the other hand, Redd sped through the town, checking each box and barrel. He did not excuse the tiniest hole either, making sure he did not miss a thing. However, their search was to no avail, for signs of their target did not show.
Worry shown on Aislynn's face, her face now visible without the mask on. She lingered on top of the building until she finally gave up. Then, Aislynn jumped down from the roof of the building and landed safely on the dirt road. "I didn't see her from up there," she stated calmly, a tone unfitting for the mood, as she jogged to Redd.
There was no response for some time, Redd apparently occupied with his search. When he set the barrels back on the ground by a stall, he stood straight and looked to Aislynn. "I couldn't find that kid either," he stated nonchalantly. He sighed and continued, "How'd you lose her?"
Aislynn smiled, contradicting that dark aura that suddenly appeared. "Excuse me, but I lost her?" she questioned as innocently as possible. " I don't recall being by Odette last—wasn't it you?"
His lips curled up into a smile that contradicted his feelings as well. "How can I keep track of something so small? I can barely see you."
Aislynn scoffed and replied, "You probably scared the poor child off."
Redd chuckled and shook his head. "And you need to grow."
The tension grew as the two continued bickering; both were ready to beat each other senselessly. "On the contrary, you need to shrink," Aislynn retorted.
With that, the two continued their search with nonstop arguing.
~X~
It was true that Odette was separated from Aislynn and Redd, but they did not lose her—it's more accurate to say that she lost them.
The three arrived at a little island called Kokoroshima, a small island in the South Blue that is shaped like a heart (hence the name Kokoroshima) with beautiful, tropical flowers adorning it. Not many know of the island, even so, there are people living there in peace.
After they tied their boat to the dock, they headed into the small town. At the time, it was bright with clear blue skies, but the empty street contrasted the weather; it should be bustling and lively, but it was empty and gloomy. Many shops and stalls were closed, but the few that were open had sleeping employees. "Maybe it's a slow day," Aislynn commented.
"Maybe they're always like this," Redd added. However, it didn't matter to them whether the shops or stalls were open; all they wanted to find a certain person.
Redd sat in the boat, looking up at the blue sky with a bored expression; Aislynn sat across of him reading the newspaper with Odette sleeping in Aislynn's lap. He glanced behind him, trying to see abnormal forms on the horizon. When he couldn't find anything, he sighed and thought, When are we getting there?
"If you're so bored, read something or be useful. If not, just go to sleep." Aislynn stated without looking up from the papers in her hands.
He glared at Aislynn and scoffed. "I'm too bored to fall asleep, and do you want me to drown?"
"I never said you had to swim—not like you can."
"You're one to talk. Also, I meant that I'm not flying out at sea with the fear that I might fall into the ocean."
"I never said that either."
"You hinted at it." Aislynn didn't respond, making Redd feel triumphant, until he noticed she stopped paying attention to their conversation and was focused on the newspaper before her. "So Captain, where the hell we headed to?" The word "captain" still felt strange to Redd's tongue. After all, he never worked with others too much.
Aislynn gazed up at Redd and set the newspaper under her bag. "We're going to Kokoroshima," she simply answered.
"Why?" Redd asked instinctively. Not like I care anyways, he thought.
"We're going to get our third nakama."
"How about Odette?" Redd questioned curiously.
"She's too young to stay with us."
"Then…"
Before he could finish, let alone start, she said, "It's what any sensible person would do." Aislynn took her newspaper and began to read it again.
Redd smirked and asked, "How old are you?"
"17."
Redd nodded and laid against the boat. Then, he quickly sat up and gawked. "You're 17!"
Aislynn nodded and silence settled in. It took some time before Redd composed himself after the surprise. "Well, who are we looking for at that whatever-the-island-is-called?" he asked with the returned composure.
No answer was given except a bounty poster of a hooded figure that held a bloodstained sword. A bounty of 21,000,000 berries and the name "Crimson Sword" was printed below the horribly taken picture. This is going to be one hell of a crew, he thought jokingly.
After a bit of discussing, they decided to find the bar in this town. After all, it's the best place to get information about both the underworld and surface world societies. So, they all stayed together and went to look for the bar. It shouldn't be too hard to find, they all thought. It's a small place.
As they went around, Aislynn and Redd unknowingly distanced themselves from Odette. Soon, they were in a different area and lost themselves in the small town. On the other hand, Odette successfully found the bar.
Filled with glee, she turned around to grin at her companions, but to her dismay, they weren't there. Anxiety replaced her feeling of glee and the brown-haired girl began to panic. The shadows that the sun played with seemed more animated and the buildings looked as if they grew larger. Every sound, from the gentle breeze to the tiniest creek, frightened Odette. The little girl became suspicious of everything, even the little rocks and pebbles of the dirt road. However, she shook her head and walked off, all the while gripping the knife Aislynn gave to her for protection. It should be quick, she thought reassuringly. It's not like we'll miss each other.
Time passed, but not enough for the sun to begin to set. During that time, her hunt didn't have any results. It was odd how they could not find each other, even when the three were next to each other. However, they looked in opposite directions.
Growl… Odette held her stomach. Not now, I'm busy. she thought as she continued her search. Being preoccupied, she ignored her hungry stomach for the first few times. However, it called louder and practically begged her to be fed, soon it was at the point where it was a hindrance. In order to satisfy the furious growls, she went to the nearest shop or stall that sold food.
Some distance from her was a stall with many tropical fruits decorating the small stall. In the stall was a sleeping person on a reclined chair and a newspaper covering the person's face. Odette smiled and dug into her pockets for the money that Aislynn gave her for emergencies—and right now, it was emergency. Unfortunately, she tripped on a rock, sending the coins rolling down a storm drain nearby.
Slowly, Odette got up and willed herself to not cry, but her attempt failed. She looked down at herself, and saw that her elbows and knees were scrapped, as well as dirty just like the rest of her body. She wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand, wiping away tears. When she pulled her hand away from her face, she noticed her hand was dirty—her face is dirty aw well. Soon, a few trickling tears became gushing rivers that fell down her face and her nose became runny.
Some distance from her was a young man of 17 years. He sat on the dirt road against an old building's wall; one leg stretched out while the other pulled to his chest. In his lap were two, sheathed swords and his hood was up to hide some of his feature; his maroon bangs also hiding his eyes. At first he was sleeping soundly, until Odette's cry woke him from his nap. Groggily, he stood up and walked to the little girl.
He stood behind her and laid a hand on her shoulder, which startled her. Quickly, Odette turned around and retrieved the knife that dangled in its sheathe from her waist. She pointed the blade toward the stranger, but he stood there unaffected. "I'm not going to hurt you kid," he stated gently.
Odette eyed him, staring into his golden eyes, which were visible from her position. She saw a genuine softness in his eyes and she loosened the grip on the weapon. However she never lowered the blade and stood there in contemplation. By now, her tears stopped but she still sniffled a bit. She noticed how the stranger didn't give her bad feelings, and how he emitted a warm aura. Then, her stomach growled, against her wishes.
The young man noticed it and walked pass her, heading to the east end of town. "If you're hungry, might as well follow me." He pointed to the sleeping man at the stall with his thumb. "That guy won't wake up, so it's impossible to buy from him even if you did have money."
She lowered her blade and put it away, wondering whether she should follow him. When he was far enough, she ran after him, seeing how he isn't dangerous. After all, little kids are good judges of character.
