Um... yeah...
Disclaimer: I still do not own One Piece. It's highly unlikely that I ever will.
Two Years Later:
Jiro rubbed his tired eyes for the fifth time in the last hour. He had spent the morning in his quarters with his solemn first mate, Benjirou, pouring over a series of maps that were scattered across his desk. They had been floating through a windless patch of sea for two days now, and the pair was using the time to figure out where they were headed. But that was easier said than done in the New World, no matter how long you had spent on those waters. The fact that one complete map of the Grand Line didn't exist didn't help either. In an attempt to compensate for this, Benjirou and Jiro were trying to piece together individual maps of assorted islands and estimate the relative distances between them.
Even though the door to the captain's quarters was closed, the pair could hear outside fairly well. Aside from the seagulls passing overhead, they could hear the loud, animated shouts of Hota, Katsu, and Emi, who were playing a game of soccer on the deck. Suddenly, there was a loud thunk,and then their volume rose until their argument was nearly distinguishable through the wooden door. Benjirou and Jiro shared faint, knowing smiles at the commotion. When the crew's youngest members got rowdy like this, it was only a matter of time before…
A new voice abruptly joined the fray outside and the original three quickly grew quiet. The smile on Benjirou's face grew and Jiro chuckled, shaking his head. Yoko had no patience for the young trio when they got carried away. And when she lost her patience, scary things happened.
The sound of the Den Den Mushi on the corner of the desk ringing broke the captain from his reverie. He blinked at Benjirou, who shrugged in confusion, before picking up the receiver.
"Jiro? It's Marco. I have some bad news…"
The red haired captain nearly dropped the receiver in his hand as he and his first mate listened to their former comrade's ghastly tale. When he finished, the pair could do nothing but sit in stunned silence. As the initial shock began to subside, a swarm of questions was left in its wake. But before Jiro or Benjirou could voice any of them, Marco continued, this time asking for a favor. Jiro agreed quickly, but warned Marco that it may not have much of an effect, let alone achieve the intended result. After Marco assured him that he was well aware of the fact, they talked for a few minutes more before hanging up.
With a new wave of weariness washing over him, Jiro sank into his plush leather chair and dropped his head into one of his hands. How had he not seen this coming? Wasn't his Devil Fruit supposed to give him premonitions of the future? This was a pretty big issue to miss. And he had a dreadful feeling that things would only get worse.
"Jiro, are you really going to go through with this?" Benjirou asked, easily reading the distress on his old friend's face.
Jiro looked up at his tall, sturdily built first mate.
"I made a promise, Benji," he said tiredly, using the man's nickname, "And I'm not breaking it. Besides, what other option is there?"
"She's awfully young to send off alone. Especially here," Benjirou reasoned calmly.
The red-haired captain shook his head, fighting back a small smile. Benjirou may have a cold exterior, but there was no limit to how much he cared for his nakama.
"You know as well as I do what she's capable of. She'll be fine. Besides, Ace would never let anything happen to her. Now call in the others. We might as well tell them all at once."
Benjirou continued to gaze at his captain for a moment before doing as he was told. Within a matter of minutes, everyone was packed into the captain's quarters. The twins and Emi were still bickering quietly over a particular goal in their game while Yoko was trying her best not to go off on them again.
Jiro cleared his throat to gain their attention and the group fell quiet.
"Everyone, I wish I didn't have to tell you this, but… Thatch is dead."
There was a brief, pregnant pause before questions came pouring out of the group's mouths.
"What?!"
"How did he die?"
"When did this happen?"
Jiro raised a hand and the questions petered off. He stared at his distraught crew morosely before he addressed their questions.
"Marshall D. Teach committed the ultimate crime," he started gravely, "Thatch found a Devil Fruit that Teach wanted. And he got it. He killed Thatch and fled with the fruit in the middle of the night."
As Jiro allowed his story to sink in, he examined his crew. The twins had grown eerily quiet and Emi was, for once, completely still. Benjirou was leaning stoically against the side of Jiro's desk, paying special attention to Yoko, who stood stiffly, her hands clenched into fists and her eyes fixed on the ground.
"He killed Thatch? Isn't anyone doing something about this?" The blue-haired cook spat through gritted teeth.
Jiro sighed, pushing back from his desk and rising to his feet. Yoko, like Benjirou and himself, had once served on Whitebeard's crew beside Thatch. He was expecting this sort of reaction from her.
"Pops decided to let this one go," He murmured, looking down at the maps before him.
"What?!" Yoko snapped, sheer disbelief plastered on her face as she gaped at her captain.
"Marco told me that Pops had a bad feeling about Teach and said to let him go. Everyone complied with the order except for one. Ace went ballistic and took off to go after Teach against orders, which leads me to my next point. Pops is concerned and Marco asked me to send Emi to try and convince him to come back."
"Eh? Why me?" Emi inquired, suddenly startled from her stunned state as she felt all eyes turn to her.
"You've known Ace since he was a kid. They're hoping that you'll have more luck than they did. Besides, if you're riding Ryuk, you're the most mobile out of all of us. If there aren't any more questions, you're all dismissed," Jiro responded, sitting back down in his chair tiredly.
As the rest of the crew trudged out of the room morosely, Emi approached Jiro's desk.
"Captain," she started after the door clicked shut, a frown pulling at the corners of her mouth, "Ryuk may let me ride him around for short distances, but I don't know if he'll listen to me long enough to get to Ace."
Ryuk was a young Sea King that Emi and her grandparents helped when it was a baby. As a result, it took to following Emi around from island to island. Despite this, Ryuk was far from the loyal pet that Jiro seemed to think he was.
Jiro was undeterred by his youngest crewmate's arguments. Rummaging through one of his desk drawers, he replied, "I'm sure you can find a way to compromise with him. Now, do you still have that Vivre Card that Ace gave you?" he waited for her quick nod before continuing, "Good. Use that to find him and keep this on you at all times."
As he finished, Jiro straightened up in his seat and tossed a small item to the violet-eyed girl in front of him. She caught it deftly and looked at it curiously. It was a baby Den Den Mushi that had a black leather strap attached so that it could be worn like a wristwatch.
"You already know the number for the one we keep on the ship. I want you to check in and keep us posted if anything changes," Jiro ordered, sounding a lot like an overbearing father in Emi's mind.
Emi nodded absentmindedly as she worked to fasten the lime green transponder snail to her thin wrist. When she finished, she stood quietly for a moment before looking up at her captain earnestly.
"You know, he probably won't listen to me. I call him Hothead for a reason," She told him, playing with the snail on her wrist distractedly.
Jiro nodded slightly in agreement, but persisted. "Just try. That's all we're asking you to do. Now go pack. I want you on the go in an hour."
Emi nodded, turning on her heel and making her way to the door. Just as her hand came to rest on the smooth metal doorknob, she was stopped by her captain's voice.
"Emi, one more thing."
She turned halfway to gaze at her captain curiously.
"Be careful. I'd rather get you back in one piece."
For the first time since hearing about Thatch's death, a bright grin appeared on Emi's face.
"Aye aye, Captain," she said with a mock salute before disappearing through the door.
As she went, Jiro couldn't help but smile a little. Nothing could dampen her spirits for very long.
Ryuk's serpentine body slithered through the ocean, his legs propelling him forward with ease. Emi sat on his head, leaning against one of his curved, yellow horns. The ocean spray caused by the dragon-like Sea King's speed created a fine mist in the air, which slowly dampened Emi's skin and hair. On their right, the fiery sun was sinking into the briny deep. However, a few stubborn rays of light reflected off of Ryuk's wet, scarlet scales, giving them a slightly golden sheen.
Emi pulled out the scrap of Vivre Card that was serving as her guide on this little voyage. It sat in the palm of her hand, pointing steadfastly in the direction they were heading. A small sigh of discontent left Emi's lips. They were heading in the right direction, sure, but were they actually getting any closer? They had crossed the Red Line what seemed like ages ago and so far there had been no sign of Ace.
Closer examination of the Vivre Card revealed it to be in pristine condition. The young girl felt a slight comfort at this. At least he was okay. A small voice in the back of her mind reminded Emi that that could very well be nothing but a temporary state. Ace was impulsive and reckless even at the best of times. But someone had killed his precious comrade and Emi knew very well that the hothead would be damned before he let it go unpunished, regardless of what Newgate said.
But wasn't that why she was here? Ace wasn't listening to Newgate and was bound to do something dangerous. She had to bring him back home before he got hurt. Or worse…
Emi shook her head firmly before her thoughts could go any further. It was those kinds of thoughts that would turn her into a nervous wreck before she could even find Ace. She would find Ace; there was no question about it. And when she did she would do everything she could to convince him to come home where he belonged. At the very least she would stay with him and try to help him on his mad venture.
The last colorful remnants of the sunset had given way to a deep blue which was quickly overtaken by a blizzard of glimmering stars. Emi lay down on Ryuk's head, using her bag as a pillow and gazing up at the stars above her. Her newfound determination temporarily subduing her apprehension, she closed her eyes in the hope of getting some shut eye.
An image of Thatch's smiling face appeared in her mind.
Emi's heart clenched uncomfortably at the thought of her dead friend. Thatch had always been so kind to her, no matter what the situation was. He was the first to crack a joke and was always willing to help her with a prank, especially if it was on Marco. Just the thought of not getting to see that smile or beehive hair of his made her heart ache.
A groan of frustration left Emi's lips. If she kept thinking about this stuff, she would never get any sleep, and Roger knew that was hard enough as it was for her. Emi rolled onto her side and curled into a ball. A cold feeling of loneliness had seeped into her bones, chilling her to the core. Try as she might, she couldn't get the feeling to go away, and she eventually resigned herself to another sleepless night.
Late the next morning, Emi found herself walking up the docks of an island. Ryuk had disappeared under the ocean's surface, probably in search of his next meal. Emi's stomach growled at the thought of food and she quickly resolved to appease it. She picked up her pace until she had entered the main square of the town. It was by no means the bustling hub of a metropolis. The doors of most of the stores were open, but the number of people milling through them was scarce. The citizens that were there ambled around at a leisurely pace, most looking languid and perfectly at ease while a few were still yawning.
The area was fairly quiet and Emi assumed that most of the townspeople were still sleeping. These people were awfully late risers, she decided. At the same time, she hoped that the drowsy atmosphere would make it easier to pull an eat-and-run, as she was currently rather low on cash. Usually she would sneak aboard ships at night and loot them for money and supplies, but she hadn't passed a ship since she left the last island she had landed on, where she had used the last of her funds.
Entering the first restaurant she saw, Emi was unsurprised to find it just as leisurely as the town it resided in. Sitting down, she ordered and hummed to herself contently while she waited. When her food arrived, she unfolded a worn copy of Ace's wanted poster, asking the waitress if she'd seen him around. She scrutinized the poster with drowsy eyes before shaking her head and walking away. Emi frowned a little at this, but was quickly distracted by her growling stomach, prompting her to scarf her food down as if it would disappear. The restaurant staff paid her little mind, opting instead to lounge in a booth in the opposite corner of the room. As Emi expected, a dine-and-dash was as simple as walking out the door.
Newly fed and much more satisfied, Emi popped into a few more stores, flashing Ace's poster around and receiving unanimously negative results. Concluding that Ace wasn't in this village, Emi decided to return to the docks. On her way, she passed a group of men that were clearly not from the sleepy town she had just left. The tall, lean man in front donned a bright yellow sweatshirt with a smiley face and a spotted fur hat. He carried a long sword over his shoulder and walked with all the lazy grace of a panther slinking through the jungle. The rest of the men, clad in matching white boiler suits bearing the same smiley face—which, Emi realized, was a Jolly Roger—followed behind the man dutifully. Emi eyed them as she passed, continuing on her way without a second thought after deciding that she didn't recognize whatever crew they belonged to.
Not long after, Ehe returned to the shore. She strode to the end of a particularly long dock, placed two fingers in her mouth, and gave a sharp whistle. After a few minutes went by without a response, she tried again. Again, nothing. The raven-haired girl kept her eyes peeled for a familiar figure weaving through the waves or a winding shadow in the water beneath her, but she came up with little. Unconcerned, Emi concluded that Ryuk was still hunting and didn't want to leave just yet.
Turning away from the peaceful stretch of sea and sky in front of her, Emi placed her hands on her hips and pursed her lips. She had some time to kill, but the question of how to do so still remained. Ace wasn't on this island and, as far as she could tell, there wasn't all that much to do. Scanning the pier, she found nothing but merchant ships until her eye was caught by a hulking yellow object at the very end of the row. The ostentatious color and peculiar shape piqued Emi's interest, which led her to make a beeline for the vessel. When she got close enough, she realized it was a submarine complete with two masts and several gilded lanterns affixed to the metal surface. A giant, grinning Jolly Roger was painted on the side. Emi instantly recognized it as the one worn by the men she had seen earlier.
Emi's eyes were alight with amazement and inquisitiveness. She'd seen a lot of strange things on the Grand Line, particularly in the New World, but this was quite new to her. She wondered what it was like to set sail beneath the waters she had come so accustomed to. Come to think about it, how did a submarine even look on the inside? The more she thought about it, the more Emi's curiosity grew.
It didn't take long for that curiosity to get the best of her. Following a quick glance at the sparsely inhabited docks around her, Emi decided that a quick look around wouldn't hurt anyone, especially since the ship's owners had just gone into town. After deeming the gangplank too easy of a route, she adjusted the strap of her bag on her shoulder and jumped up into the air. Grabbing hold of the handrail, she easily flipped herself over it, landing lightly on the deck of the submarine.
Once she judged the deck to be safely empty, Emi took a moment to take in her surroundings from her new, higher vantage point. To her left, a sunny sky glimmered against the deep blue of the ocean. In the distance, Ryuk arched out of the water and sank back under smoothly. Back on land, everything appeared calm and still. She could find no sign of the submarine's crew.
After listening carefully for movement on the vessel and hearing nothing, Emi bolted to the door. She wasn't about to waste the opportunity the see the inside of a submarine. When, or even if, she would get this chance again was anyone's guess. Emi had to throw all of her weight against the door to get it open, but she was just thankful it hadn't been bolted shut.
Upon slipping inside, Emi was greeted by a platform and a small set of steps that descended a few feet to a long hallway lit by systematically placed lights on the walls and ceiling. Everything in sight appeared to be made of metal, which had a cold, impersonal gleam from the pale lights.
Not satisfied with simply peeking inside, Emi flitted down the steps and slowly made her way down the corridor. Inspecting each door as she passed, Emi found they were all similar; they gave no hint as to what dwelled inside. She did her best to keep her already light footsteps quiet on the metal floor below her feet, lest any crew member that might have stayed behind hear her and decide to come looking.
A narrow, winding staircase resided at the end of the corridor. Emi peered over the railing in an attempt to see what was below before shrugging, sitting on the railing, and sliding down. To her slight dismay, a similar hall resided at the bottom, with the doors more widely spaced than the ones on the previous floor. Emi wandered down the corridor before arbitrarily picking a door to open. Just as her hand came to rest on the doorknob, slow, heavy footsteps came from the stairs. Emi wrenched the handle down and tried to open the door, but found it was too heavy to do so quickly. Glancing at the stairs, she could see a shadow now. The footsteps were getting louder…
A tall, bulky man in an orange jumpsuit and a furry white hat lumbered down the hallway. Above him, Emi clung to the pipes mounted on the ceiling, taking slow, silent breaths and watching him intently. The man paused underneath her and Emi stiffened. Her heart began to pump faster and her breath caught in her throat as she waited for him to look up. Just as the suspense had Emi ready to burst, the man turned to the ajar door on his left and closed it completely, muttering something to himself about a careless penguin.
Emi exhaled an exaggerated sigh of relief as the man continued down the hallway. Slowly, she unlatched her feet from the pipe and hung briefly over the metal floor before dropping down into a crouch with little more than a soft metallic thump.
Suddenly, the man stopped short. The ear on the man's furry white hat twitched and he whirled around.
Emi felt her stomach plummet as his gaze fell directly on her. All panicked thoughts of being caught dropped out of Emi's mind as she blinked at the man in front of her. Except… it wasn't a man, but a bear. A white, fluffy, orange jumpsuit wearing, bipedal polar bear to be exact.
There was a tense moment of silence while Emi and the bear gawked at each other with equal and utter befuddlement. Finally, Emi, unable to articulate a more complex thought, blurted, "You're a bear."
To Emi's amazement, the bear visibly sagged at her remark. His ears and shoulder drooped and his gaze dropped to the scratched and scuffed metal floor. "I'm sorry," he mumbled dejectedly.
Emi could only blink absently at the animal before her eyes lit up. "You're a bear that can talk?!"
The bear slouched even further, and as he apologized again, Emi could practically see the despondent aura looming around him. In an effort to cheer him up, Emi strode towards the bear until she stood directly in front of him with her hands on her hips. The bear blinked at her and she beamed back.
"You're weird," she deadpanned, "But I like you. What's your name?"
Slowly, almost hesitantly, the bear perked up. "Bepo," he replied.
Emi took one of her bear's paws in both of her hands and shook it vigorously. The motion barely moved his entire arm.
"Lovely to meet ya, Bepo. My name's Emi."
Within an hour of meeting Bepo, Emi had managed to learn quite a bit about him. He was first mate of the Heart Pirates, under "Surgeon of Death" Trafalgar Law. They had recently arrived in the Grand Line and his beloved captain had already begun making a name for himself. So far, Bepo missed North Blue because it was cooler and it had more female bears. Emi tried to convince him to give her a tour of the submarine, but Bepo persisted that his captain wouldn't like it and insisted that they remain on the deck outside. After Bepo bribed her with an apple and stories of Spot, his pet fish, she consented.
The pair was still conversing— Bepo standing in the sea breeze, Emi perched on the railing with her feet dangling freely— when they heard footsteps on the gangplank. Emi peered around Bepo in time to see the man in the yellow sweatshirt from before boarding the submarine. His sword was still resting casually on his shoulder. This time, the men following him lugged heavy looking burlap sacks and wooden crates onto the deck.
The man's eyes immediately landed on Bepo and Emi. "What do we have here?" he asked, a sly smile on his lips.
Emi bounced off of the railing and flitted up to the man, carelessly invading his personal space without a moment's hesitation. She smiled at him airly and answered, "I'm Emi, Hanatomi Emi. You must be Trafalgar Law. I like your ship. And your bear."
If he was annoyed, Law did a remarkable job of hiding it, Emi noted, mildly disappointed by the fact. The only thing she could find in the curve of his smile and the quirk of one of his eyebrows was amusement.
"So you're the granddaughter of the infamous couple from Roger's crew," Law mused, "I always thought you'd look more menacing. Are you here to join my crew?"
Emi tried not to wince at Law's comment. Sometimes she wished her ancestry wasn't such public knowledge. She loved her grandparents dearly, but they sure knew how to leave a large shadow for her to live in. She often wondered how much of her current bounty was from her own actions and how much of the Marines had assigned to her due to her bloodline.
Pushing thoughts of her grandparents' legacy away, Emi turned her attention back to the pirate captain in front of her. "No," she deadpanned, "I was just bored and wanted to explore your ship. Bepo wouldn't really let me, though."
"I see," Law responded lightly, though his grip on his sword shifted in a clear threat, "In that case, get off of my ship."
A mischievous grin broke out on Emi's face at his reaction. The warning was not lost on her, but she found the risk more exciting than frightening. "Aw, but we were just getting to know each other," she mock whined.
Law's smile took on a sinister quality, giving Emi the slightest hint of why he was known as the "Surgeon of Death." He flicked his thumb at the hilt of his sword, disconnecting it from its sheath. Emi was about to reach for her scythe, which was retracted and concealed on her person, when a familiar roar reached her ears, reminding her that she had important matters to attend to. In a flash, she had moved across the deck, balancing easily on the metal railing and grinning at the expressions of astonishment on the faces of Law's crew. She gave a sharp whistle before saying, "Sorry, we'll have to pick this up another time; my ride is here. See you later, Mister Law!"
Digging her hands into her pockets, Emi allowed herself to drop backwards off the yellow painted railing. Twisting during the brief fall, she landed feet-first on the familiar scaly head of Ryuk, who wasted no time in rocketing off towards the open sea. Emi spared a moment to wave at the bewildered pirates on the submarine, and then turned around, digging out Ace's Vivre Card to point the Sea King in the right direction. Time to get back on track, she decided. She needed to find Ace.
