Contains minor spoilers from the Post-Marineford arc (chapter 582+).

Chapter 3 v2
Wish Upon A Star

Eli liked gentle wake-ups. Hearing someone calling her name softly, she would even accept a light touch on her shoulder. Ace knew that and, therefore, he was usually the one waking the girl up. However, sometimes, some dreadful times, Luffy would get impatient as the sun rose high in the horizon and, when he had decided that the girl had slept enough, the boy would shook her harshly, while calling out her name quite loudly. This was one of those mornings.

"ELI !"

Her jade eyes cracked open, her face wincing at the loudness of the boy.

"Wake up !" Luffy said cheerfully.

As her vision quickly became clearer, Eli saw his wide grin and, no matter how cheerful his face was, she wouldn't let herself become softened by his childish face. With a loud gasp, she hurled her fist in his face, its rubbery consistence deflecting the blow on the spot.

"I'M GONNA KILL YOU GOMU-MORON !" Eli yelled before watching the rubber boy fleeing from the cabin, his carefree laugh resonating through her ears.

Almost two years had passed since her arrival on Dawn Island, and Eli never left the two brothers' side. She and Ace were sixteen years old then, Luffy was thirteen. They had all grown up, even the girl, to everyone's amazement. She was now taller than almost every villager, even as tall as Dadan, the black-haired teenagers' foster mother.

"Morning Twig," Ace greeted as the girl finally got out of the cabin.

"Morning Freckles." Eli yawned loudly while stretching out her arms, walking over to a small stream of water running not too far from the cabin to have her usual morning wash.

'Twig' was the nickname that the freckled teenager had gave her in retaliation for 'Freckles'. Although it was obviously insulting, it fitted the girl appearance quite well; very tall, very skinny, and extremely curve-less, she was the perfect picture of a twig. Ace was the only one to call her that and, even if he had given it to her in an attempt to annoy her, Eli profoundly liked the nickname. After all, it seemed fair enough. As the time passed, the girl had found herself annoying the teenager playfully. She liked mocking Luffy too, but the boy was so dense that he always took her mockeries to the letter. Ace on the other side was a worthy opponent for her facetious remarks, and their witty banters soon became their usual way of communicating.

And so, even though the three teenagers fought everyday, Eli had quickly grown attached to the two black-haired brothers and considered them as her new family.

By living with Ace and Luffy and joining their daily training, Eli had gained speed, agility, resistance and even strength, but sadly, not an ounce of femininity. Life in the wild was harsh. Training in the merciless environment of the jungle of Mont Corvo, the teenagers faced savage creatures everyday, feeding on their meats; the survival of the fittest was the only rule that applied there.

Even if her growth was praiseworthy, the two brothers' were just utterly amazing. Despite the fact that he did not possess the power of a devil fruit, Ace was the strongest of the three and his lack of devil powers had found itself extremely useful since the other two just seemed to keep falling in the water, giving the freckled teenager the important and very annoying position of the lifeguard.

After her morning ritual, Eli walked back to the cabin for a change of clothes. Her fashion sense did not budge an iota within those two years; short shorts and skinny t-shirts for summer, and during the winter times she wore jeans, sweaters, a coat, gloves, a scarf, and earmuffs as she had discovered that she was extremely sensitive to cold while facing her first hibernal season.

"Today's the day I'm gonna beat you !" She heard Luffy taunt from the outside.

Slipping her head through the curtain that she had installed for privacy purposes, Eli saw him standing proudly in front of the cabin, his fist resting on his hips. Looking at him, she wondered if he would be right this time. Ever since their first fight, Luffy had been challenging the girl everyday, and she kept winning by a hair's breadth. Yet, he was getting closer, and closer with every duel, and Eli was seriously considering that she might lose anytime soon.

"I'm working today Luffy," she said, while resuming to her simple dressing.

Slipping inside her shorts, she pouted, seeing that the fabric was scratched, and picked another pair as she always tried to be as presentable as possible when she was working at the bar. Eli rapidly brushed her short hair and stepped out of the cabin, finding Luffy now challenging his older brother.

"We'll fight tonight, okay ?" Eli offered, to which Luffy nodded contentedly. "See ya !"

Wind fluttering through her messy mane, she was running down the mountain at a comfortable pace. Upon arriving at the pleasant village of Fuschia, she slowed down and saluted the townspeople with a cheerful smile. They were all very good people, hard workers, and trustworthy, and so Eli had easily found herself rather attached to them and the lovely town them lived in.

Entering the Party's Bar, she was warmly welcomed by Makino. The woman had been extremely nice with Eli, and she was the only female figure the boyish girl had ever had. Comprehensive, the barmaid never tried to change her though, and was considered like a big sister by the three teenagers. Makino was feeding them whenever they wanted, giving the two brothers' clothes and politeness lessons while always sporting a gentle smile on her pretty face; she was the exact opposite of the manly and bossy Dadan.

The foster mother did not seem to care the least for her two sons, and Eli even less. However, the harsh woman was sometimes showing a soft side whenever one of the teenagers ended up injured during their life-threatening training. And somehow, they had affection toward the mountain bandit, even though they never admitted it out loud.

Overall, Eli loved her new life and would not change a thing for the entire world, except maybe for the cabin they slept in. It wasn't that bad two years ago, but now that she had grown up, the girl had found herself longing for a bit of privacy. But in the end, it didn't really matter; after all, it was only a place to sleep when they weren't bivouacking outside.

Eli put her apron on, tried once more to tame her unkempt hair, and walked over to the first customers of the day.

Yes, she loved her new life, and she loved the two black haired brothers even more. Silently, Eli wished silently that she could stay by their sides forever.

Once the noon shift was over, Eli packed a small lunch and dashed out of the tavern. The summer sun was high up in the sky and its rays burnt on the pale girl's skin. Accelerating her pace, she soon saw the library and entered the establishment briskly, enjoying the freshness prevailing in the dark room.

"Hello Elisabeth," the librarian greeted warmly.

A soft smile on her face, Eli nodded and swapped her bag in front of her. For a few seconds, she searched through the mess and made a little joyful sound as she found the two books she was looking for. Dusting their covers carefully, she walked over to the librarian's wooden desk and put the books down.

"Thank you." Eli pushed the book toward the grey haired woman. "They were really great !"

The old woman chuckled and put the books in a cart behind her.

"I'm afraid I already lend you most of the legend books I own." The woman turned around a small book in her wrinkled hands. "But maybe you could read this."

A large smile on her face, the woman held out the book. Hearing her chuckle, Eli was slightly suspicious. She curled her fingers around the cover and silently read its back while the librarian covered her chuckling mouth.

Feeling a little tight around it, Eli cleared her throat. "It is... romance, right ?"

"It is my dear," she confirmed, the smile on her face widening along with Eli's embarrassment.

"Thank you." Eli put the book on the counter. "But I don't read those... things."

The librarian adjusted her small glasses of her nose and nudged the book in her direction.

"It's a good way to learn, Elisabeth," the elderly said, the warmth of her voice softening the scold.

Why would I even want to learn those things...? Eli wondered. Silently, she stared at the book while chewing on her bottom lip.

But it was only a book after all. Eli reckoned that the light wrench on her guts was a rather inappropriate emotional display toward a set of printed pages. No matter what kinds of words were printed, in the end, it was only a book.

With a deep sigh, the girl picked the book and, once more, analyzed its cover under the gentle gaze of the librarian.

"I could give it a try..."

A squeal escaping from her wrinkled lips caused Eli to look at the grey haired woman with surprise. Maybe that wasn't only a book after all... Yet, she had already admitted her defeat and as her stomach uttered a loud growl, the girl put the novel in her bag and thanked the librarian.

"You wont regret it," she said as she waved the girl goodbye.

Villagers coughed, their hair fluttering wildly, as Eli dashed through the town, a large cloud of dust arising behind the girl's path. Soon, she reached the forest, shadow patches covering her on the spot, and the paramecia slowed down her pace. A smile crept on her lips as she spotted her favorite 'reading' tree. She took her lunch box out of her bag along with the little book and sat down, settling her back comfortably against the large and protective trunk.

Half of her meal was still inside of her lunchbox for a moment. Absently, Eli was sucking on her empty spoon while her jade eyes, wide open, were rapidly gliding over the words.

It was a love story. About some noble girl and her childhood friend. He had become a pirate when they were only teenagers and their paths had separated on a bittersweet kiss. The noble girl had made her life, burying her feelings for her old friend deep inside of her. But, on the night before her wedding day, he had come back. Out of nowhere, he had appeared on her balcony.

The noble girl was shaken, obviously. It had been years since she had last seen him, but she had never really forgotten him. Not with the delicious memory of his kiss haunting her dreams at night. But she was arrogant and very determined not to let the young man destroy the comfortable life she had.

Like a spoiled princess, she mocked him; ignoring how attractive he had became, and demanded him to leave. Smugly, he was laughing at her, telling her how beautiful she was, and the girl was shaken by his charms.

"...simmering within the tender warmth of his kiss..."

Eli's eyes widened. She was positive, the voice wasn't the one reading the words inside of her head, it had came from above her, it was deep and tinged with an hint of mockery.

Her face rose upward and she slammed the book closed.

Ace...

"The noble girl was losing her footage as a whirlwind of pleasure washed over her to the tips of her toes...?" Ace barely finished his sentence as laughs got in the way of his words.

Now staring at the stupid, stupid book, Eli's face was flushed. She was beyond mortified, and utterly voiceless as words of excuse, insults, and frantic yelling jostled in her head while Ace was roaring with laughter, keeping his balance by supporting his convulsing body on the tree's trunk.

In a hard, reverberating, heartbeat, she put her belongings back in her bag, stood up, and found herself stunned on her feet. He was laughing, laughing at her, it was unbearable to an extreme degree; never had the girl felt so wounded. First, the thought that it was all so very unfair considering it wasn't even her book occupied her mind, and then, anger splashed over her; how could he find it hilarious that a girl was reading a love story ? Surely, she wasn't the first and definitely not the last.

"What's SO funny ?" Eli swirled around and blasted a glare of pure hatred at the raven-haired teenager, who was still howling. Tears forming in the corner of his eyes, his forehead was pressed against the tree while he was holding his bare abdomen. "Tell me ACE ! What is so funny !" she barked, squeezing her eyelids as she did.

His convulsions weakened as he slowly rolled his head to look at her. Rage was painted across the girl's face. Her red cheeks had now turned dark crimson, her lips were parted as she was panting in distress, and her lovely jade eyes were glowing, slightly watery with the heavy and throbbing sensation swelling inside of her chest.

"I can't believe..." Ace wiped the tears in the corner of his eyes. "I can't believe you read that stuff !" His voice, a bit too loud, was still filled with amusement and grated on the girl's ears.

"Why ? Why is it so hard to believe that I read this... that..." Eli found it hard to mouth the type of book had been reading. "LOVE stuff ?" she finished in a shout.

Ace seemed taken aback by the L word. His eyes grew wider for a few seconds as he stared at the humiliated girl. Lifting his hand to his mouth, he cleared his throat and grabbed his shaggy mane while rolling his eyes away.

"It's just..." He wasn't looking at her and it made Eli's hostility grow sharper. "Not you... you know...?"

Through her burning mind, Eli knew that he was right; romance didn't fit the boyish girl she was. But having him judging what was fitting or not for her was still very insulting.

"Because I'm not a girl ?" she said harshly, throwing her hands in the air as she spoke.

Seeing him speechless again, Eli turned around to leave. Her feet kicked the ground with force in an attempt to release a bit of her rage with her every footfall. The waitress wanted to go back to the tavern, focus on her work and forget about the stupid teenager. She could have disappeared in a flash, but she had yet to leave him behind. A raw wrench on her guts as a pain remained underneath of her skin; she wanted him to see her as a girl, like any other, with heart and emotions. She wanted him to excuse himself, even if she wasn't ready to accept his apologies.

But as she walked away, Eli, somehow, knew that Ace wouldn't apologize. And then, unexpected, the sound of muffled footfalls reached her ears, and a small light shone inside of the girl's heavy heart.

Ace grabbed her shoulder and, as warmth spread from where his hand was, her muscles loosened. Silently, Eli came to a stop but refrained herself from turning around. A hand on her bag, she brushed the leather absently.

"I'm sorry." His hand lifted. "I know that you're a girl but..." Ace paused as he took a large intake of air and released a long sigh. "You're not like the others... You're... you're special, Twig."

Special ? That was vague. The adjective could mean absolutely everything and the exact opposite. Yet the tone of his voice was warm with embarrassment and it eased the girls ache on the spot.

"Talking about 'special'..." Her hands behind her back, Eli swirled on her toe, a large grin plastered on her face. She leaned in his direction and stuck the tip of her tongue out playfully. "Don't you have some bowl of soup to drown into ?"

The two teens' witty banters washed away the awkwardness yet, as she walked back to the tavern, Eli promised herself to never, ever read another romance novel... once she finished this one, of course.

The afternoon was slow in the Party's Tavern. Once the washing-up and general cleaning was done, the barmaid and her waitress played cards while waiting for the customers to show up. Through the windowpanes, the light slowly weakened as the sky took on a warm orange tinge, and soon, the wooden swing-doors hinges mewed, awaking the establishment and their workers out of their lethargy for the evening to begin in Fuschia tavern.

Once the night shift was over, Eli stepped out of the bar and found Luffy and Ace waiting for her in front of the establishment; it was time for her duel.

The tree teenagers went over to the beach to fight. Walking silently, the girl looked up at the sky. It was almost two years ago when she had first fought with Luffy, and her victory had given her so much. Nostalgic, the girl took a deep intake of air to fill herself with the warm summer scent.

The full moon was lighting the beach brightly, and the sound of the waves was soothing. Upon arriving to a large part of the beach, the two opponents faced at each other, a smile on their faces and nodded simultaneously.

"Bring it on," Eli said, moving her fingers tauntingly.

Luffy did not wait another invitation, and sporting his familiar grin on his face, started launching his attacks smartly. Focused on his movements, all the girl's senses were dedicated to predict and evade his every blow. One hit and she would lose. One hit was all Luffy needed to impose his superiority on her. Of course, Eli was proud, and very gutsy, but she wasn't heedlessly arrogant anymore. That was one of the things she had learned while watching the two brothers. Even if she would never admit it out loud, they were amazing, fearless, and so strong. By their side she had first felt weak, but they never looked down on her, and she had her own strengths; her speed was out of this world, and so she had concentrated all of her training to draw the best of her ability.

Dodging his every attack gracefully, Eli tried not to feel too threatened when she felt his fists grazing her skin. If she happened to lose her focus, even if it was only for a split second, she would be done for.

Sidestepping at an amazing speed, Eli was in a place where only she and Luffy existed. Ace had disappeared, along with the trees, the waves, and the stars. She could hear Luffy's every breath, she could see his fists multiplying around her in slow motion, and she moved around them just in time to avoid the blows.

The boy was a machine. Never showing a sign of fatigue, he kept attacking over and over again, but she was one with the wind; uncatchable, invisible, light, and free.

Eli was used to fighting him now. After two years she knew his every attack, and from the position he took, the direction in which his black eyes looked, she knew exactly where he was going to strike. But when Luffy crouched, the girl was snapped out of her trance.

What the...

The rubber boy threw a whip-like leg attack that she had never seen before and, instinctively, she jumped high up to avoid being swept away. But how stupid she was; Luffy had obviously planned her reaction and launched his fist in her direction.

Eli's green eyes widened with dread. In slow motion, she saw his fist closing in as she was still in the air. The girl was incapable of accelerating her fall and it was going to hit her, hard.

Slowly, the fist came in contact with her stomach, and gradually it sunk deeper. She felt her guts contracting under the forceful blow, air escaping her mouth with a loud gasp as her lungs squeezed. The pain jerked her out of her speed, and she was blown meters away, remaining in the air for two seconds before hitting the ground roughly, gliding a few more meters on the sand.

"ELI !"

She heard the rapid footfalls of the two brothers, but her vision was blurred. Trembling, she stood on her hands and knees, spasms making her cough blood several times.

"Are you alright ?" Luffy asked, he crouched by her side and looked at her with worry.

Slowly nodding, she sat down and wiped the blood of her mouth with the back of her hand. Her guts were still upside down and her heart harshly pounding in her stomach, Eli could not find the strength to talk.

It hurt... In both her body and her mind. That was it. She was defeated and it only took one single hit.

Putting a smile on her face, she looked at Luffy, deeply. He was so young yet so strong, and it made Eli wonder just how strong he would become with one more year, or three. His dreams were amazing, but so was he.

"I guess I have to call you captain now," she said quietly as the wrench in her stomach made it hard for her to talk.

A large face-splitting grin appeared on the boy's face, and somehow it surprised her. Did he still want her even though she was so weak ?

"My first crew member !" he yelled out cheerfully. The boy stood up and, ecstatic, he threw his fists high up in the air.

His jolly mood was contagious, like always, and raised the girl's spirits. Eli wasn't so surprised to find herself chuckling while watching him so happy. And after all, losing wasn't so bad, it had been a while since she had decided she would join his crew and now it was decided.

Luffy went home, but Eli wanted to enjoy the summer night. Well, that was what she said, but in reality, she still felt quite weak and felt that she needed to rest a bit before being able to walk. Shifting a bit forward she put her feet on the wet sand, the waves lapping her skin lovingly.

Seeing Ace sitting next to her, she turned her head to look at him wondering why he was still here. Was he worried ?

"I'm fine," she said with a smile. "You can go home."

"I know," he said quietly, his eyes lost in the distance.

With a sigh, she let herself fall on her back, nestled her hands behind her neck, and glanced at the teenager sitting next to her. Sometimes Ace acted just as childishly and heedlessly as Luffy, but there was other times, just like then, when he had an unreadable look on his face. He would remain silent, staring into space and then Eli would wonder what was going through his mind.

"Do you know stars, Freckles ?" she asked, now looking at the twinkling canopy.

"Yeah, shinny dots in the sky."

Eli shook her head. "I mean their names and stories."

"Stories ?"

A smile crept on the girl lips as she saw Ace looking at her questioningly.

"Let's see..." She made a quiet thinking sound. "Let me tell you about Vega and Altair."

Eli told the black-eyed teen the story of the two celestial lovers. Vega was a weaver girl, daughter of the Jade Emperor in heaven. Every day, using her magical robe, she descended on earth to bathe. She would slip out of her robe and dive into a stream of clear water. Every day, she would enjoy this bath peacefully and return to the heavens thanks to her magical robe, until, one day, Altair caught sight of the weaver girl. It was love at first sight and so that she wouldn't leave the Earth, the cowherd stole her robe and Vega could not return to her home.

Despite her ire, the weaver girl fell in love with the mischievous cowherd, and so, the two lovers married.

When he was informed of that union, the Jade Emperor in heaven's wrath tainted the skies. Vega was supposed to live in heaven and spend her days weaving colorful clouds, not marring a lowly mortal. Furious, he torn Vega from Altair's embrace. But the cowherd was courageous and followed his wife into the heaven. Unfaltering, the Jade Emperor tore the skies apart, creating a wide rive to separate the lovers forever.

The Milky Way flowing between them, Vega and Altair sat on each shore, sadly gazing at the other side while hoping to catch a glimpse of their lost love.

Touched by his daughter's melancholy, the Jade Emperor relented. Once a year, on the seventh day of the seventh month, he allowed the weaver girl and the cowherd to meet.

"The seventh day of the seventh month..." Eli repeated quietly. "It's my birthday."

"It's in two weeks," Ace said, to which Eli nodded, her eyes focused on the two lovers who would soon be reunited. "And what do you want for your birthday, Twig ?" he asked, smiling at the girl.

"I wish... I could swim again..." she said, liking the fresh sensation of the waves on her feet.

That was the one thing that she hated about her devil fruit ability. Before eating it Eli liked to swim, almost as much as she liked to run. Swimming in the ocean felt so good, and she missed it.

"But I guess that's impossible." She looked at him with a broad smile. "Maybe a huge chocolate cake then !"

Ace smiled and leaned backward, his arms supporting his upper body.

"With my name on it and everything !" She pouted lightly, making light, scolding motions with her finger.

Ace laughed warmly. "Sure thing !"

to be continued

Betaed by Fox MC.

This chapter was entirely rewritten and the number of words had been multiplied four times !

I also added two new scenes but if it's the first time you read it, I think you don't really care :)

I know I have written a lot more chapters but I still enjoy reviews on the old ones, furthermore if they have been rewritten :)