Authors' Notes:
Con: Uh oh... That title doesn't look good... ~.~ What have we done? ~,~
Darth: I blame it entirely on you.
Con: Say, whaaaa!? D: Oh wait. You're right, but that's what I do best. ^^ Though, they still don't know what it is we've done! X)
Darth: Muwahaha.
Con: Muwahaha, indeed. :-) Anyways, we'll let you guys get to it. X) Enjoy~~!
P.S. from Con: Okay guys, so this is one of my favorite chapters. I've read it over and over again. I really hope you guys enjoy it. :) I want to see more reviews!
Charmed
Chapter 16: She Cries
After they left the book store, Gen turned to Luffy, looking grumpy with a frown, and asked, "So, now where to?"
"I guess we could go to find an inn now," Nami said, looking about.
"There's several closer to the guilds, that way our group isn't too far apart for now," Luffy said and pointed towards several large buildings.
"That's fine. Let's go have a look," Nami said with a smile as she went to pet Merry, her dress flowing about her.
Luffy climbed onto Merry and turned to look down at Nami. "Do you want up?" he asked and held his hand out.
Flushing lightly, she then smiled and took his hand to climb up atop Merry again. It felt right for her to be sitting there again. Luffy smiled as they started riding towards the inn. Somehow, everything felt right the way they were. Once they made it to the inn, Zoro insisted he was fine and walked inside on his own. Nami went to the counter, relieved to see a woman this time behind it.
"Hello, how may I help you?" the woman asked, when Nami approached the counter.
"We would like... Um..." Nami turned to Luffy then. "Are we all staying here?"
"Well," Luffy said, thinking about it, "I have my own place to stay. It's not that far from here..."
"Oh... then... I guess... I will be coming with you then," she said, looking down with a blush as she smoothed out her skirts. Why was she so nervous suddenly? "I guess the others could stay here."
"Like hell! I go where Na-chan goes!" Gen exclaimed with a deep frown.
Luffy winced and said, "In that case it's better we all stay here, while you're in Mariejoie." He nodded to the woman behind the counter. "Two doubles and one single, please?"
"Of course," the woman said took down three keys from the wall and handed them to Nami.
"Thank you," Nami said, handing Gen one set and Nojiko the other before moving upstairs to put away their things. "Should we visit the guild after we eat then?" she asked Luffy, knowing everyone was behind her.
"That sounds like a good idea," Luffy said, following behind her.
"I, too, wouldn't mind going," Robin said, "since I have in mind to do some research on them."
"All right," Nami said, unlocking their room and trudging in before setting down her bags.
"What guild are you a part of anyway?" Sanji asked, as he stopped at their door.
"Devil's Fist, why do you ask?" Luffy said as he followed Nami into the room.
Sanji's eyes widened, and he couldn't help, but gasp.
Nami came back out just in time to hear that, and then she blinked at Sanji, "Sanji-kun?"
"Yes, Nami-swan~?"
"Why did you look so surprised?" she asked, her frown softening as she turned to Luffy. Luffy was behind her, but he was just staring at Sanji, blankly, though there was something in his eyes.
"You mean..." Sanji started, as he gaped at Nami, but then he shook his head. "Oh, no reason in particular. It's just a very famous guild, I was surprised, a shit head like him, was a member of it."
"Oi!" Luffy yelled and glared back at Sanji. "I'll have you know my family runs the guild!"
Sanji's eyes went wide, even more surprised to hear that. Was he telling the truth? Nami couldn't help the little giggle that escaped her lips as a fist was brought to her lips.
"Well," Luffy muttered, "let's get something to eat. I'm hungry."
"Yeah, all right," Nami said, smiling brightly as she headed back downstairs.
The rest of the group followed, Sanji glaring at Luffy now, but with a kind of new found respect and wariness.
Once downstairs, they all gathered around a table and ordered their food. Nami was in a better mood than she usually was and was chattering away to her sister and Gen. Luffy ordered his food, and waited for it to come. He glanced over at Nami, watching her talking away, but during a pause, he smiled and said, "Glad to see you're in a good mood."
"Hmm?" she questioned, looking over at Luffy, her expression blank, though she was smiling. "What?"
"You're smiling," he said and smiled at her. "I'm glad to see you happy."
Her smile faded as she gaped at Luffy, and then her cheeks reddened considerably as she looked down. "O-Oh..."
"Ack, sorry," he apologized. "I didn't mean to embarrass you."
Gen rolled his eyes, his brows deeply curved into his nose. Nami bit her lip and shook her head. "No, it's all right. I... I feel better here, knowing that nothing should happen, s-since... mostly everyone here are mages or protected from magic."
"Na-chan... what happened?" Gen finally asked and frowned at her softly, wanting to know what had gotten her so spooked.
Sighing deeply, Nami kept her head lowered as she frowned softly and said, "I wondered off on my own, and... I was upset... from the bad argument with Luffy. A few men, who had been enchanted by me somehow, approached me, wanting to comfort me. It got out of hand, and they began fighting over me. Next thing I know, my clothes are being pulled... every which way. Then, my clothes began to tear, and the fighting stopped, but then... hands were touching me." As she spoke, tears came to her eyes. "Then... Luffy... he was just there..." She sniffled, bringing up a hand to wipe the tears from her eyes, "and he made them go away." Gen could only gape in shock.
Around the table there were similar reactions, though Robin and Zoro both remained stoic, only sporting frowns. Nojiko gasped her eyes widening and filling with tears. "Nami..."
Luffy looked away, having rested his elbows on table, and now had his lips pressed to his raised hands. Then he looked at Nami and placed a hand on her shoulder.
Nami hiccupped softly, still wiping at her eyes and appreciating his comfort. "I-I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner."
Gen could now see why the boy blamed himself, but was still surprised by his guilt.
"Nami..." Nojiko called and reached across the table, placing her hand over Nami's.
Looking up, Nami attempted a smile and said, "I'm all right now. I just... get a little scared in cities and towns."
Luffy gently clenched her shoulder, and smiled at her. He would always be there to protect her. Her cheeks flushed as she looked over to Luffy before lowering her head again, though she was smiling. Soon, the waitress came back and set down their food, and Nami slowly began to eat. Now that the food was there, Luffy released Nami's shoulder and started eating as well.
After they had finished their meal, Nami stood up and said, "Well, I'm ready to figure out my abilities now. Shall we go?"
"Yeah," Luffy said, standing up. "Is everyone else coming as well?"
"Of course!" Gen bellowed as he stood to follow.
"I'd like to see this guild," Zoro muttered as he also stood.
"This has been my intention from the beginning," Robin said as she also followed after them.
"I'm not letting Nami out of my sight," Nojiko said and went straight to her sister, taking her hand in hers.
"As will I," Sanji said, also following. Now he was curious to see this guild for himself, not to mention, it was the most famous.
"Right," Nami said, smiling a little nervously as she started heading out, her fingers curling around her sister's.
Luffy walked on her other side, leading the group to the guild. "Here we are," he said after a while and stopped in front of a large building.
"Wow, it's really big," Nami said, gaping up at the large construct.
"Yeah," Luffy said and shrugged, "but it's more important, what you use the space for, rather than how much there is."
"Oh, I see," she said, though she wasn't entirely sure what he was talking about.
"Yeah," Luffy said and blinked. "Really not sure why I said that... Wanna go inside?"
"Yes, please," Nami said, smiling at him.
Luffy led them passed the tall gates and into the building. "Most of the guild is made of a common area, where there's food and drink, and job postings. Then there's the office areas, and the library is down that way," he said and pointed off into a side branch of the building.
"Oh, wow," Nami said, looking around.
"Oi, Luffy!" a voice suddenly called, and looking over, Nami could see a freckled man, grinning at Luffy with another man beside him, a tattoo on his face, who was also smiling.
"Ace, Dad," Luffy called and ran over to his family. "I'm back!" He grinned at them and motioned to them. "This is my dad and my brother! Anyways, anything happen, while I was gone?"
"Meh, the usual. You know Gramps," Ace said with a shrug.
The tattooed man kept staring at the group, making Nami nervous. Ace... and dad? Was the tattooed man really Luffy's father then? "Who're they?" Dragon suddenly asked.
"Oh..." Luffy said and was suddenly apprehensive, "they're just... friends I met during the journey..."
"Friends?" Dragon asked, his voice low, but a slow smile curved across his lips. "Just friends?" he asked again before making his way to them. Taking Robin's hand, he pressed his lips to the back of it, all the while keeping his eyes on hers. "Welcome then. My name is Dragon. It's a pleasure."
Robin just smiled calmly and said, "Yes."
"Oi!" Sanji cried and glared at the man. "What do you think you're doing?"
Then Dragon suddenly moved on to Nami, ignoring the others for now, as he kissed her hand as well and said, "My dear, an absolute pleasure."
Nami blinked at the man rapidly, her eyes wide, though surprisingly, she wasn't afraid. There was a calmness about the man that made her feel at ease. "H-Hello, it's nice to meet you," she said and then cleared her throat.
"Oi, oi, knock that off, old man," Luffy said and blanched. His eyebrow twitched violently.
Ace smirked at Dragon before looking over at Luffy. What was he upset about?
"Why you...?" Sanji seethed and scowled to the man.
Dragon then moved on to Nojiko, doing pretty much the same. He kissed the back of her hand and said, "Most certainly an absolute pleasure."
Nojiko's cheeks flared. "Oh... I... umm... uh..." Wow, was this really Luffy's father? He was so... smooth, and the brother was hot.
"Oi, you son of a bitch!" Sanji exclaimed, ready to attack.
"Might we have the honor of your names?" Dragon asked, smiling at Robin first, since he greeted her first and ignoring Sanji altogether, seeing as he had reacted to all three.
So, which one had Luffy claimed? Ace thought, looking between all three women. He was pretty sure he knew already, but he wanted to be sure.
Robin chuckled and said, "Robin."
"N-Nojiko," Nojiko said and smiled to the man, her cheeks flushing.
"N-Nami," she replied, her cheeks also flushing lightly.
Luffy glared stepping towards Nami. "Knock it off, Dad!"
Ooh, the orange haired one? Ace smirked a little wider.
Dragon turned to Luffy, his expression bored, "What? I was just being friendly."
Luffy glared at his father and said, "What do you mean 'what?', and friendly my ass!" He pouted.
"You got a claim on them'r somethin'?" Dragon asked, still looking bored.
Nami's lips quirked in an amused smile, though her cheeks were flushed.
Then Ace stepped up to join Dragon, bowing deeply to the girls and said, "I am Ace. It's a pleasure."
Nojiko flushed to him and smiled. "Pleasure's all ours, Ace," she said, smirking slightly to him, and he smirked back to her.
Nami smiled, a hand going to her cheek as they flushed. "Suddenly, I'm beginning to wonder how Luffy's related to either of you. How are you even related? He doesn't take after either one of you."
"Ah, well, we're not actually blood related. I was just sort of... adopted into the family since I was born. Maybe that's why," Ace said and grinned.
Luffy's eye twitched. She should meet Gramps, he thought to himself. "Yeah, yeah," he muttered, "stop acting so fresh."
Robin laughed softly. Very unlike his father and brother indeed.
Sanji's eyebrow twitched. How dare they...?
"You here to see Gramps?" Ace asked, his brow quirking curiously to Luffy.
"Uh," Luffy said, glaring at his father and brother, "yeah..."
"Well, he's busy right now," Ace said, starting to smile amusedly at Luffy.
"Please, make yourselves at home," Dragon said, looking between Luffy and Nami. He, of course, noted that Luffy only reacted to when he introduced himself to the orange haired one.
Ace then spoke up and said, "You should find them some rooms, Luffy."
Luffy flushed. "No..." he muttered and turned to Ace, "we already got some rooms at the inn down the road."
"An inn? Why?" Ace asked with a blink.
Nami flushed a bit harder as she lowered her head.
"Eh?" Luffy said and blinked. "Because they didn't want to split up, so we just all got rooms at the inn."
"Oh... Why couldn't you just come here?" Ace asked and tilted his head to the side.
Nami flushed harder, keeping her head down.
"Wait... we have space for them?" Luffy asked and blinked again.
"We could have managed," Dragon said with a shrug.
"Yeah, we have a few spare rooms not being used at the moment," Ace said with a smile.
"Oh," Luffy said and shrugged, "I guess we can move later..." He looked at Nami and asked, "Do you want to move here or stay in the inn?"
Ace's smile widened, watching as Luffy talked to the orange haired woman. No, he was actually asking her. So unusual, yet so amusing.
Looking up at him, Nami then shrugged, and looking around, she then said, "I guess we could stay here."
"Okay, I guess we can move here then," Luffy said and just nodded sagely, as if he had decided all by himself, which he did not.
"Yeah, okay-Luffy, come here. I need to talk to you," Ace said, motioning for Luffy to follow, and then he wrapped an arm around Luffy's shoulders to pull him away from the group.
"Huh?" Luffy blinked in confusion, and looked at Nami over his shoulder, allowing Ace to lead him away, but then he asked, "What's up?" He was wary of leaving Nami around Dragon.
"So, really... who are they?" Ace asked as soon as they were out of earshot.
"Oh..." Well, he supposed he could tell his brother. "Nami was a client from the last job I took."
"Okay... and?" Ace asked, quirking his brow.
"Well... I kinda broke their town, and she refused to pay. So, I kidnapped her 'til she paid me back..." Why did his logic sound so much stupider now that he was saying it aloud again?
Ace shrugged then and said, "That sounds about right. Gramps would'a done that. One thing though... She doesn't look like she minds."
"You've gotta be joking me!?" Luffy burst out, but then quickly quieted down. "She's been making the whole trip miserable ever since I grabbed her!"
Ace's eyes widened as he leaned back to the sudden outburst, and Nami frowned as she looked over at them. After a moment, Ace just blinked and said, "All right, so why do you seem to be over protective of her?"
"I... don't know," Luffy said and slowly frowned more softly. Why was he so over protective of her? Especially how she'd always been trying to make him miserable. "Well... she has some kind of magical ability, a pretty wide range too, but there's something about her that breaks the, no sleep, curse that Moria put on me."
Ace looked interested then and asked, "Oh yeah? What kind of abilities does she have then?"
"Well, she's got weather magic, raw, but pretty powerful, and a really weird ability she can't control that... I dunno... makes all the men go crazy around her. They basically want to do anything she asks, but she has no control over it."
Ace's eyes widened a bit and asked, "She can... what?"
"Yeah," Luffy said and nodded, "it's crazy to watch, but it isn't mind control. They still seem in control of themselves, but it's more like they all... fall in love with her..." He blinked. That was it... Why hadn't he figured it out sooner?
"Fall in love with her?" Ace asked, and his brow lifted up. "Really? That's interesting. How does it work exactly?"
"I have absolutely no idea," Luffy said and shook his head. "That's part of why she's here, to figure out how to control this ability."
"Doesn't sound like a bad thing though, if she can get them to do what she wants. And how is she not in control of it?" Ace asked and titled his head.
"Well," Luffy said and shrugged, "it's always working. It started happening a little while after I kidnapped her, too. She doesn't know how to turn it off. So men are always bothering her, when she doesn't want them to. It... get's complicated."
"I see, but I don't feel anything. Does that mean only the normal men are affected?" Ace asked, and he once again, quirked his brow.
"Yeah," Luffy said and nodded, "mages and magic users aren't affected in any way. And magic resistant and repellent gear can protect people from the influence as well."
"Uh huh," Ace said, smiling slightly, but only slightly. "So, what's your story then?"
"I don't know," Luffy said and frowned at Ace. "I... I feel like I want to protect her, but I'm not sure why, especially when she's angry most of the time. So... I guess her ability affects me just a little bit?"
Ace turned to look at the green haired man, who didn't seem to give a shit about anything, nor was he affected by the orange haired woman, and then he looked back at Luffy with a smirk. Then he reached up a hand and poked his head. "Nope... Her magic isn't affecting you, you idiot. You're just in love with her."
Had Luffy been drinking something, Ace would have been coated in a layer of spit and whatever Luffy had been drinking. "Wha... wha... WHAT!?" he shrieked, looking horrified.
Everyone blinked, all looking over at Luffy and Ace. "What the hell are they talking about?" Zoro muttered with a frown.
"Good question ..." Nami replied with a deep frown.
"Bet I have an idea," Nojiko said and smirked, but otherwise, she said nothing else.
"Eh?" they questioned, turning to her.
"Secret," Nojiko said and now grinned. Nami frowned even deeper, looking at her sister before turning back to the boys.
"See!? It's written all over your face!" Ace declared with a big grin.
"You... You're crazy..." Luffy stammered and shook his head, almost violently. "There's absolutely... No... I mean... You're crazy!"
"I'm not the crazy one. You're the crazy one~! You're crazy about her," Ace teased, poking Luffy's cheek.
"I am not!" Luffy said and swatted Ace's hand away. "You don't know what you're talking about!"
"Sure I don't. You're just too stupid to realize it. It's okay though. You will," Ace said with a wink before turning around. "Anyways, Gramps wants to see you. You're going to have to report everything that happened."
"Oh," Luffy said and started sweating. "Is that really... necessary?"
"Yup," Ace said, turning to smirk at him. "You might want to talk to him alone though."
"Yeah..." Luffy sighed. "When does he want to see me?"
"You know him, he wanted to see you five minutes ago," Ace said with a chuckle as he started walking away.
"Eeh!? You said he was busy!" Luffy said and took off for his Grandfather's office, down a long and huge hall, with equally huge windows lining down on one side.
"Yeah, I lied! I wanted to talk to you first!" Ace called after him with a grin and his hands cupped around his mouth, though he continued walking backwards.
Frowning very deeply now with a tad of worry, Nami quickly moved after Luffy and asked, "L-Luffy, where are you going?"
Ace watched the girl walk by him and smiled a bit. At least it wasn't one sided.
Luffy turned back to smile at Nami, though his face flushed when he saw her, remembering what Ace had said. "Don't worry, I just need to go talk to my grandpa. I'll be right back."
Ace smirked at Luffy from behind Nami a bit. Frowning softly, Nami then just clutched her hands together and said, "Oh..."
"You know, on second thought, she should at least go with you and wait just inside. He might want to meet her," Ace said and gave a lazy, half-sided smile. Frowning a little deeper, Nami looked behind her to Ace.
Luffy paused at the great doors to his Grandfather's office. He looked at Nami gulped with a nod and then knocked on the door.
"Come in, Luffy," his grandpa's voice said from inside.
When he opened the door, he had to duck as an inkwell flew overhead at great speed, smashing against the opposite wall. He stared up at Garp, who was standing behind his desk. "Wh...What the hell are you doing, Gramps?!" he yelled and stepped inside. Nami carefully peered inside, just in case nothing came flying, and then stepped inside fully, but moved to the side.
"You idiot," Garp yelled, walking around the desk and clocking Luffy on the top of the head. "What are you doing taking jobs in your condition?!"
Nami blinked at the large older man before turning to look at Ace and Dragon, who came in behind her, both smiling at her kindly. Then Dragon closed the door.
"Shut up, old man!" Luffy yelled. "I've been getting plenty of sleep! So I'm just fine!"
"Liar!" Garp yelled and hit him again. "That spell hasn't been broken, and you know it!"
Nami bit her lip then, just listening to the two and waiting to be introduced, though she was a bit worried... She also couldn't help being a little annoyed. So, he wasn't supposed to be taking on jobs? She narrowed her eyes at Luffy.
"Anyway," Garp said, walking back behind his desk and sitting down. "So, who's your friend?"
"Oh," Luffy straightened himself and motioned to Nami, "this is Nami..."
"The customer from your job?" Garp asked and frowned. "What is she doing here?"
Nami frowned deeply then, looking over at Luffy. Had he been wrong in kidnapping her? If he was...
Dragon was interested now. He had actually been wondering exactly what they had all been doing there.
Luffy took a deep breath and said, "Well... when I got to the job, I accidentally destroyed the village in taking down Arlong. Nami refused to pay, so I kidnapped her."
Garp nodded and said, "I see. Sounds reasonable."
"Reason-! Mmm!" Ace had come up behind Nami and covered her mouth with his hand.
"Shh, shh," he said, but said nothing more, letting Luffy and Garp continue their conversation.
"And did you get the pay?" Garp continued.
Luffy shook his head and said, "No, I did not."
"I see," Garp said, glancing to Nami for only a moment before looking back at Luffy. "What did you do then?"
"We made a deal, to take jobs together 'til I had enough to cover the job, and she had enough to rebuild the town I destroyed."
Garp nodded slowly and said, "I see." He stood up, turned around behind his chair and made his way to the window to look out of it.
"And... how much have you both collected so far?" Dragon spoke up this time, lifting a brow to Luffy.
"We've collected about two thousand gold pieces, but we have more coming in from our last job," Luffy told his father.
"Two thousand? That's it?" Dragon asked with a slight frown.
Nami frowned deeply and looked at Dragon.
"Yeah, but I told you, we got more coming in," Luffy said and looked away. Not going well...
"And part of the money is for the girl?" Garp asked, his eyes narrowing slightly as he gazed out of his window.
Luffy nodded nervously and said, "Y-Yeah..."
"Unacceptable. The money is confiscated," Garp declared and turned his narrowed eyes to his grandson, "and your deal with her is void."
"What!? You can't do that!" Nami cried, tearing away from Ace, who still held her, but Ace wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her back to him.
"I just did," Garp said and walked back to his desk. "You will work off your debt to our guild, until I've been satisfied. You will learn, that breaking a contract with a guild such as ours is a serious offense."
Luffy was horrified. He hadn't expected this... He never should have brought her here... "You can't do that, Gramps!" Luffy yelled with a scowl. "The contract was with me, and we already reached an agreement!"
"Shut up, idiot boy!" Garp was suddenly in front of Luffy and hit him hard enough to smash his face into the ground. "I am the Guild Master! You will follow my orders! And this girl is not to leave until her debt has been paid!"
Nami felt tears in her eyes at her growing rage and frustration. "You can't do that! You have no right to do that!" she screamed, trying to get out of Ace's grasp.
"Too late," Garp said and grinned at her, almost maliciously, "I already did."
She screamed loudly in her rage and fury. She wrenched herself away from Ace and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her. She wanted to hurt someone, break something... anything. She was furious, and she felt helpless.
Luffy ran out of the room, following after her. "Nami!" he called out to her.
"Huh?" Garp asked and blinked. "What's up with him?"
Ace sighed loudly as he closed his eyes and turned his head away. "Nothin'..."
"Tsk, tsk, father," Dragon said, quirking a brow to his father, but he said nothing more.
"Stay away from me!" Nami screamed over her shoulder, trying hard not to break into sobs. Hearing Nami's scream, the entire room turned to the hall, and Gen frowned deeply. What was going on?
"Nami!" Luffy called again and kept running after her. "Nami!" He ran forward, grabbing her arm, just before she exited the long hallway with all the windows. "Listen, I'm sorry! This isn't my fault!"
Gen frowned more deeply, watching as Luffy grabbed her arm, and jolted a bit to go to her, but decided against it. Nami then whirled around on him, her face exposing her pain and rage, and then she whipped her hand across his face. "It is all your fault!" she yelled, gasping loudly and heavily as her tears fell. "All of it! I want you to stay away from me! Do you hear me!? Just leave me alone!"
Luffy was frozen after the slap. That hurt more than it should have, and not physically. Turning back to her as she again began storming away from him, he rushed after her, a heavy feeling in his chest. "Nami!"
She turned quickly and shoved him harshly away from her. "I said stay away from me! I don't ever want to look at you!" she screamed, her voice sounding extremely pained. "You stole it from me, Luffy!" she continued, "You gave it to me," her voice sounded weak as her expression changed to a look of pain and sadness, "and then you took it away again!" she yelled as she pushed him a second time. "You took away my freedom, Luffy! Don't you dare come near me again!"
It finally made sense; the feelings he'd had from several days ago. He'd... He was no better, than the sorcerer he'd saved her village from. He'd fought so hard to free her, and then all he ended up doing was enslaving her again. Worse, he wasn't in charge of her freedom anymore.
But he was too far enraged, feeling the unfairness of it. Feelings were surfacing, that should have remained buried, and so, he grabbed her arm again as she turned away from him. "You're the one that refused to pay!" he yelled. "All you had to do was give me the money, and I would have been out of your hair for good! But you thought that, just because you think the world works one way, people would just cater to your world view! Well guess where that got you!? You're now the slave of a man who fights, and slaughters, dragons with his bare fists! You think your talk of fairness is going to do you any good here?"
She screamed again, but this time, it was a scream of rage, anguish and despair. She then whipped her hand across his face even harder than the last one and screamed at the top of her lungs, "I hate you!" As sobs tore through her, she shoved him away one last time and made a break for the exit.
Gen's face softened. So... she wasn't free after all. "Na-chan," he called to her as she passed, but she didn't stop. She kept going, throwing the doors open and disappearing outside.
Nojiko started off after her sister, but turned around to look at the young mage. He looked so... forlorn, standing there like he didn't know what to do or think. His hand slowly lifted to the cheek she'd slapped, and his head was still turned to the side from it.
Ace stood out in the hallway, just staring at Luffy. He had heard every word. He could understand how Luffy would be upset, but he should never have said those words to her. He could hear the girl's heart breaking in her scream, and those three words she'd spoken had sounded like the truth. In that moment, she had truly hated him. He gave a shudder, and his head lowered.
Luffy clenched his eyes shut, and suddenly, his aura exploded more violently than ever before, shattering all the windows in the hall. Breathing heavily, he then took off for the bar, feeling the need to get wasted.
Ace jumped and quickly look towards the windows, his eyes wide. He had not expected such a violent release in energy. The shattered glass even turned to dust and drifted down like glitter. Gen had also jumped to all the windows shattering before frowning softly after the boy. Dragon frowned deeply, slowly turning to look outside, the people curiously looking in and wondering what the crazy mages were up to now.
Nami kept running, to no one knew where, as she sobbed loudly. She bumped into a few people, some of them men, whose eyes seemed to glaze over in a daze. Even if they were wearing magic protective armor, in Nami's state, they were all affected. They all began to gather around her, asking if she was okay, but then she screamed, "Get away from me!"
A wave of energy exploded from her, making all of them gasp and grab at the pain they felt in their hearts; a despair so great and agonizing that a few began to tear up for no reason at all. Dark clouds quickly rolled in, and a torrent of rain began to immediately fall over them, but they didn't seem to notice or the orange haired girl, who disappeared within the dark rain.
Ace blinked a bit, when it suddenly began to rain heavily, and then looked down as his frown softened to the water slowly seeping inside through the broken windows. Seeing the rain, Nojiko quickly ran after Nami, to try and find her, before she hurt as well. She needed to know what exactly had happened.
Nami finally ran down an alley, where it was remote and plopped down onto a crate, beginning to sob harder. It hurt so much... Her hand reached up to clutch at her heart, not even noticing that she was completely drenched from the rain.
Nojiko ran past an alley, but doubled back. She'd found her sister. "Nami?" she tentatively called, stepping into the alley.
"Nojiko," Nami wailed softly, but she kept her head lowered as she hugged herself, the sobs still tearing through her.
Nojiko dropped to her knees next to her sister and wrapped her arms around her. "I'm here..."
This, however, only made her sob harder and louder, her whole body shaking. "I should have just given it to him!" she wailed, but then she said more softly, "I should have just given it to him! If I had just... done that... we wouldn't have had our homes, but we would have had our freedom! We would have been happy! We could have... collected the money together! I was... I was being so selfish! We had our freedom!" she wailed painfully as she sobbed even harder. For a decade, they had been under control of that sorcerer. For a decade, none of them had been free, and now, she still wasn't.
"It's all right," Nojiko whispered and rubbed her sister's back. "You couldn't have known what was going to happen. It's not your fault. We're going to get through this."
"He... He confiscated my share, Nojiko.. And... And said I had to keep working for the guild until he was satisfied! I... I can't go home," Nami said, still crying into her sister's chest.
"Don't worry, Nami," Nojiko said, but she had tears running down her cheeks. "I promise, you won't be alone."
Wrapping her arms around her sister finally, Nami held her tightly and just let herself cry, until she didn't think she had any more tears left to cry, but even so, the pain had never dissipated.
Nojiko held her tightly, trying to soak all her pain into herself. "I won't leave you. I won't ever leave you, Nami."
"No-jik-o," Nami whispered in a soft wail, hiccupping violently from her cry. The rain had still yet to cease, soaking them all the way through to the bone. Nami's eyes stared off blankly, and she felt as if she could possibly sleep forever.
To Be Continued...
Authors' Notes:
Con: Ouch... ~.~ So... that's what we did... Harsh... ~.~
Darth: I'm not talking to you anymore.
Con: Whaaaa?! D: But, but, but... D: Eh, that's okay. My true evil plan is realized! X) Muwahahaha! X)
Darth: Wait, what?
Con: What? o.o I love causing pain and heartache for the characters. It's fun. o.o
Darth: Ah yes, the true motivation for any writer.
Con: Indeed it is. X) I most certainly had fun coming up with this epic idea. X) Who doesn't love a little drama and heartache?
Darth: Quite.
Con: Well, at any rate, we hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! :-D
Darth: Hopefully the next one won't take too long to get published.
Con: I'll get right on it, maaaan! D: Until next time! XD