PLEASE PLEASE PLEEEAAAASE DON'T KILL ME! I'm so terribly sorry for not being able to post new chapters. All I can say is that I've been going through a lot of shit- so I deeply apologise for not doing so sooner. However, since I have been so ungrateful to those of you reading I have decided to upload a heap of chapters- SO BE PREPARED TO READ A LOT! Truth is, even though I haven't been updating I have continued to write and plan my story. Again, so so so sorry *cries* I know how frustrating it is to want to read the rest of the story- so sorry!

Love you all, and I hope you enjoy the treat xx

And to all of you out there that have something horrible going on in your lives, I hope it all works out! Please review and tell me what you think- if you do that I'll work doubly, triply harder to make you's the rest of the story!

Chapter 3

"Her name is Red Force."

"Who's name?" I frowned, I hadn't met any woman.

"Our ship, her name's Red Force." Redhair seemed shocked that I didn't know what- sorry who- he was talking about. I decided to not to point out that he'd just talked about his ship as if it was a woman... I'd rather not know to be honest.

"Ah, I see." I stared up at the large ship. "She's beautiful."

And indeed it was. The Red Force was massive, it had three large, white sails, each painted with the pirate crew's Jolly Roger- a skull bearing two red strips over it's left eye and a pair of sabres crossed behind it- which indicated that it was indeed the ship belonging to pirates. It's head figure was a fierce looking... Horned dragon? And, are those the tips of Palm trees I see on the deck?

Shanks grinned in reply to my compliment and childishly grabbed my hand, dragging me on board so he could give me a private tour. I rolled my eyes at his whims, but allowed myself to be dragged along, who was I to stop this strange man's fun?

He quickly dragged me to the room that would apparently be mine for the next couple of years. He raced down the corridors, turning this way and that until we came to a stop in front a door that was labeled 'Captain's Quarters'. He slammed open the door directly opposite, letting it slam against the wall, making me jump slightly.

"Here." Redhair declared, dropped my hand only to charge into the room, dive and begin jumping up and down on my... used-to-be-made bed. The room was about double the size of my old room, I'm guessing about the size of Redhair's room which was just across the hall. Pushed up against the back wall was my massive bed, the one Redhair was now, rather immaturely, leaping around on, there were two small sets of draws either side of the bed with a lamp on the top of each. To the left of the room was a large, walk-in wardrobe with a full length mirror and on the right of the room was the door to what seemed to be... I walked through it confirm my suspicions. Yes, it was indeed my own bathroom. Complete with a toilet, shower, sink and heated towel rack. Why I needed one all to myself I was not quite sure.

I sighed and wheeled my suitcase out of my personal bathroom and over to the walk in wardrobe, ignoring the 'Jade! Jade, look!' that was my 'uncle'. Was he really that much older than me?

I then proceeded to unpack my suitcase, putting the clothes in their new designated places, deciding to ignore Redhair's existence altogether. Finally, he settled down, lying faced own on the bed, limbs stretched out so he was in a star shape. I shook my head, picking up my beri bag and my katana wrapped in Papa's cloak. I decided I would hang my cloak in with the rest of clothes in the walk in wardrobe, so it wouldn't have fold marks by the time I get to wear it, and that the twin katana would lean against one of the bed posts, so they were ready in case of an emergency. The beri bag will stay in one of my bedside draws, so I'll be able to find it easily, I reasoned. Nodding at my conclusion, I placed the objects in my hands in their rightful spots, disposing of the suitcase under my bed. Brushing myself off, I rose to my feet and stood at the edge of the bed, watching the face down Redhair with slight suspicion. He'd been both quiet and motionless for a time now. It was both concerning and peaceful.

"Oi, Redhair. I've finished unpacking, you can show me around now." No response. I leaned down next to his ear. "Redhair." I nudged his side.

Suddenly, he bounced up onto his feet, his sandals sinking into my covers. "Right, let's go!" He jumped off the bed, grasped my hand in his and dragged me out the room, excited for the tour to begin. I smirked to myself. Two things I was certain. First, that Redhair had fallen asleep face down on my bed, in the shape of a star. Second, that he had a weakness. He was ticklish.

I passed several of the Redhair pirates, they all seemed extremely friendly, greeting their captain and I. Even those who weren't close enough to speak to us wove their hands as if to welcome us. I wove back, of course, and returned the greetings to the crew members. I kinda knew my way around the ship. Kinda meaning not at all, but I've been introduced to the different places, so I knew was the ship consisted of. Redhair was taking me back to the food hall, for lunch. It would been soon after everyone had eaten that we would lift anchor from Kuraigana Island, the gloomy island that I call home. It was going to be hard to get used to the Red Force, to be able to find my way around, get to know the crew and find my sea legs. The only reason I could walk straight at the moment was because Redhair was still hauling me along by the arm. I stumbled across the deck, Redhair was far too hyped for his own good, he still had the same grin plastered across his face that he had on when we left my room. His grip was terrifyingly strong, I sincerely hoped that I wouldn't have any bruises by the end of the day, although I doubted I'd be let off that easily.

We passed the palm trees- yes they have PALM TREES on their deck- and entered the food hall, majority of the crew already sat down munching on their meals.
Redhair continued to drag me, stopping over at a small table that only had three people sitting at.

"Take a seat, Jade. I'll be right back, I'm just gonna go get us some food. Oh, this is Benn, Roo and Yasopp. Guys, this is my niece that I was telling you about. Her name's Jade. Seeya~" And just like that he was gone.

I sighed, took a seat opposite the three men and nodded in greeting.

Two of them grinned in return, the third simple nodded.

He seemed more serious than the other two. He was tall, his more serious face more comforting and more familiar than the other two, probably because Papa also wore a serious face too. His long hair was jet black and was tied back from his face. In his mouth was a cigarette, and, like shanks, he wore loose fitted pants, which were tucked into his buckled boots. He wore a black tee and around his waist he had a yellow sash, his rifle was tucked into it.

"The name's Benn Beckman. But you can call me Benn. I'm the first mate of this crew, it's nice to finally meet you." His voice was calm and deep, reminding me much of Papa.

I smiled. "Nice to meet you too."

He jerked his head to the other two, "These two are Yasopp and Roo. Don't touch Roo's meat and be wary of mentioning Yasopp's son around him." At this, the chubbier man grinned, picked up a leg of meat from his plate and tore into it. The other man, upon hearing his son mentioned, began to tell us all about him.
I nodded in appreciation to Benn's information and turned to examine the other two crew mates.

The chubby one, Roo, was still consuming the meat in front of him. Looking down at his plate, my eyes grew wide. Meat was the only thing on this man's plate. He was a little shorter than the other two, had stubby fingers and a well-rounded belly. He had a stripy green and white t-shirt, a matching stripy bandana, and short white pants. He also had a sash, a red one, and draped over his shoulders was a yellow coat.

The third man who was seated with them, Yasopp, was in the middle of describing his son to us, who was apparently called Usopp. The slim man had wavy blond hair that came down to his shoulders, and was sporting a headband that had 'Yasopp' written on it. He had on a dark blue shirt and dark green pants that reached his calfs. On his face he wore a proud grin and his eyes were glazed over, no doubt remembering times he spent with his family.

"Pleasure to meet you." Roo said through a mouthful of food.

I smiled and nodded in agreement. I could probably get used to these dorks.

Redhair appeared in the seat next to me and handed me a plate full of food. "Good to see you guys are getting along, now eat up. We are departing soon."

I stood inbetween Redhair and Benn as we sailed away. I watched as my home shrank in the distance until it had disappeared into the horizon. I sighed sadly, I would miss those stupid monkey things.

"Woah, don't get all depressed on my yet!" Redhair shouted. "I was just about to talk to you about the new training plan."

I turned to face him. "New training plan?"

He grinned, "Yeah! The first 6 months or so you won't need your katana, I just need you as you are."

"Ok, shall we start then?" I was excited, this is the reason I was on the Red Force, what I would spend the next few years doing. And it was about to begin!