I do not own One Piece.
"Your siblings?" Marco asks shocked, setting a chair next to me. I smile thankfully, I had been leaning pretty heavy on my crutch and didn't really think that I could stand much longer. He takes a seat on deck next to Ace and Thatch, next to Whitebeard's chair.
"Yep, half-siblings to be exact. We have different mothers," I clarify, smiling slightly at everyone's shocked expression.
"Why would your siblings be claiming that you killed your father and destroyed your village. Why would they lie like that?" Thatch asks, looking slightly confused. My smile turns bitter and I shake my head slightly.
"Like I said, they were only half lying. I did kill him. But I hurt no others. I killed him and left. I didn't attack those three nor did I attack anyone in the village." I reply, leaning back in the chair, staring up at the sky.
"You might as well tell us everything, Zahara," I look over at Ace, seeing him smiling at me slightly. I smile back, nodding my head before taking a deep breath.
"Alright. I won't be going into any details, but I guess I could briefly tell you all," they all nod their heads, turning their attention to me. "I'm not really sure how old I was when I was left at Dawn Island, I was no older than four I know. I lived in the woods there, hunting and stealing for food. I knew that a group of humans, Ace and the bandits that raised him, lived in the forest as well. My experience and instincts told me to be cautious around them, so I tried my best to stay far away from them. I occasionally caught glimpses of Ace as he went out hunting, but never paid much mind to him. I think I was around five when our paths crossed, well I had been stalking a prey for awhile and Ace decided to kill it. So, I attacked him. We fought for a good couple of hours before we both collapsed from exhaustion.
Ace looks towards me, demanding to know why I attacked him. My…vocabulary wasn't the best at the time. But I tried my best to get my anger and why I was angry across to him. He laughed at me, teasing me for not being able to speak, before leaving. But after that, he began showing up there everyday. We would usually just sit there, him talking and me occasionally saying something, which usually didn't make much sense. After a couple of weeks, he even gave me my name. He said he heard it somewhere and 'it sounded okay.'" I say with a laugh, smiling fondly at Ace, whose face had turned slightly red, causing the other three men to let out a laugh.
"A few months later, we met Sabo, who was obviously used to a different life than Ace and I, but yearning for something different…something more. He began running around with us, he stayed in the Grey Terminal, which was a dump outside of the city walls. He took a more active role in teaching me how to speak, he also taught me how to read and write. We spent all of our time hunting and stealing, trying to get enough money for a pirate ship. When we were ten, Luffy moved in with Ace. Ace hated him, he constantly tried to kill poor Luffy…until Luffy was kidnapped by some 'pirates' living on the island and refused to tell them where we kept our money. Though he was still ridiculously mean to him."
"Wait…wait. Ace hated Luffy?" Thatch asks incredulously. "The same Luffy that Ace never shuts up about? The Luffy that Ace would nearly kill someone for? Just because they said something that could be an insult?" I turn my disbelieving gaze to Ace, whose face had turned a dark red.
"I…might have started acting a little bit nicer after what happened," he admits, looking away embarrassed. I nod my head, a small smile on my face.
"Understandable," I say, before going back to my story. "A few months, probably about half a year, or a little longer, after meeting Luffy, some pirates attacked the island…Looking for me. They had heard that a silver fox was living on the island and had coming looking for me, hoping to catch me. We knew that the pirates were on the island, but didn't think that it would affect us at all. I went out hunting one evening, alone. Luffy had an obsession with pirates so Ace and Sabo had stayed to try and stop him from seeking them out. They hide their scents and stalked me. I didn't notice them until it was too late. As soon as I caught a whiff of their scents, a tranquilizer dart hit me, quickly followed by two more.
When I woke up, I was tied to a bed on a ship. I struggled as hard as I could, but wasn't able to break free. A man walked in, injected some drug in me, causing me to be lethargic. I wasn't unconscious, but I couldn't focus on anything or anyone. I don't know how long I was on that ship, I was constantly slipping in and out of consciousness. But one time, I woke up to the ship shaking violently, and bangs and yells coming from outside. I wiggled my way out of the ropes, they hadn't really been worrying about keeping them very tight due to the drugs. I made my way onto the deck, trying my best not to be seen. I was able to steal a row boat and make it away…I passed out not longer after I started rowing. When I woke up, I was once again in an unfamiliar bed, but thankfully not tied down. Though I couldn't move anyway, so I guess it didn't matter.
A woman had found me washed up on the beach and had tended to my wounds. She also taught me basic first aid and let me stay with her until I was completely healed. She made some clothes for me, and warned me to hide my ears and tail. Most people were pretty prejudice about any type of demon. I left her island a few months later. I didn't really know where I was going, but I knew it was unwise to stay in one place for long. With as many people out looking for some way to make some good money fast. I traveled around, hitching rides on ships and just going where I could. I met quite a few good people. They taught me fighting and more first aid. Taught me about different plants and how to make poisons.
When I was around thirteen, I heard of an island that had hundreds of fox demons living together with humans. I had long since found out that I was only half demon, so I figured that had to be where I was originally from. So, I decided to go there. I had never really cared before. Ace, Sabo and Luffy were all the family I needed. But for some reason I felt that I had to go there. I hitched rides with merchant ship until I made it there. I made sure to hide my ears and tail and walked, excitedly into the village….Only to freeze.
The stories I had heard had painted a picture of harmony, of two species living together despite their differences. But that wasn't what was there. There was peacefully living together…the demons were nothing but slaves there. The humans did nothing but look down on them, treating them like dirt. It sickened me to see that, but I knew I wasn't strong enough to do anything. I knew that if I tried to help it would end in nothing but bloodshed. So I gritted my teeth and walked to the pub, hoping to find some information.
Behind the bar, there was a poster of a man, who looked slightly familiar. The barkeep noticed me looking and decided to tell me about him, and why he wasn't allowed in the town any longer. He used to live in town, with all of the other nobles and their slaves. He lived with his three children and wife. Thirteen years earlier one of his slaves had a child. All of the other slaves in town always looked at the child with pity, but none of the nobles thought anything of it. Until the child reached the age of three, and the wife notice a striking resemblance to her husband. Now, it was illegal to have sex with one of your slaves…once they reached the age where they could have children. You were kicked out of the village, and your money was taken. You either had to leave the island, or live in the other village, with peasants.
He tried to save himself, claiming that the slave had bewitched him…forced him into it. That he wasn't in his right mind at the time. I don't know if they believed him or not, but they sentenced the mother and child to a public execution the next day, they locked them in a cage in the town square, and took all of the nobles possessions and money, and kicked him and his family out. The wife moved in with the neighbor, who rumor has it she had been sleeping with for years, leaving the father alone to raise the three children with no money…with nothing but the clothes on their backs.
The next morning, when everyone went out to the town square, the mother was alone in the cage. They looked everywhere, but couldn't find any trace of the child. Most began to believe that the mother, in a fit of madness, ate the child. But no one really knew what had happened. They killed the woman and forgot all about the child.
After hearing the story, I decided to seek out the man, I had to know if I was that child or not. I went to the village and found out that he lived in the woods, they didn't allow him to live with him. Seems he still treated everyone like they were beneath him. I found him easily enough and even without removing my hood, he realized who I was instantly. He began screaming and yelling about how I had ruined his life, calling me and my mother every name he could think of…before attacking me. I snapped, I attacked back and ending up killing him. I have never been able to bring myself to regret that, I truly believe that he deserved to die…I just wished I had gotten some answer before hand. His kids stood there in shock, staring at me as I stood over his body. I turned away and left, not sparing them a glance. I left the island the first opportunity I had. I began getting attacked a lot more after that…it was only a couple of years later that I learnt that it was those three hiring or tricking people into attacking me." I finish softly, glaring a head of me.