Guys with all the funny moments the last chapter had this one is one of the most earnest chapter. And I put now a big WARNING for whose who are very sensitive on the subject of abuse or were abused, don't read this disturbing chapter! I was shivering and almost crying while writing this chapter (and I wasn't abused by my father, but I think in this chapter I came to a more or less accurate and honest reaction to someone who could not bypass it properly). Summary of this chapter is on the way back to the camp Kid dreams about her past, Ace worries about her, the group makes it to the camp Chopper does his part while Kid has a more vividly discribed dream and Kid wakes up.

Chapter 19: a true nightmare

When the group covered more than half of the route back to their camp and the sun started to rise Kid became suddenly fitful. At first Ace didn't bother to tell someone of the group about it but he kept an eye on her. When Kid eventually grasped his shoulder with a weak grip and whispered: "please… don't do it again…"

"Guys, I think Kid is feeling very bad." Ace said with a bit of concern, he started to query whether his decision was right.

Zoro, Sanji (with Nami on his back and Robin in his arms) stopped and turned around to look to those two. All of a sudden Kid began to flail around, screaming at the top of her lunges: "STOP PLEASE... THIS HURTS! HELP!"

Some of those uncoordinated yet painful strikes even hit Ace, but this time he didn't drop her he pressed her against himself, because he was worried she could hurt herself while she still hit every where she could in her febrile delirium, while the rest of the group looked in shock at those two.

After some time Ace sank to the ground still holding Kid close to him, while her hits already had weakened she still screamed: "LET GO PLEASE… I WON'T RUN AWAY… I Promise! Just stop it!"

Slowly but steady Kids screams abated and were replaced by whimpers after Ace said quietly: "it's okay… no one's gonna hurt you…"

"Please… someone… help me…" Ace heard Kid whisper in her fiver delirium while tears streamed down her checks.

"What are we going to do now?" Robin asked, it was the first time Nami saw her friend having no clue what to do, and it made herself even sadder.

"Luffy what do you…" Zoro started to ask while he turned around but then he froze for an instant before he yelled madly, "LUFFY YOU NUMBSKULL!"

There was no sight of Luffy but just when Zoro wanted to run riot Sanji, who had placed Robin and Nami carefully down at the ground, run towards him and kicked him to the ground while he yelled furiously: "STOP YELLING, KID NEEDS QUIETY!"

Just when Nami tried to take all her strength together to get up and give them a clot, Ace said insistently yet still not to loud, "Shut up, both of you!"

Nami and Robin looked to Ace and Kid; Ace seemed to have a change of heart, he seemed back to his sober self, he even appeared to worry about Kid.

"Guys I think Kid's only getting worse the more she's moved around, I'll stay sometime here with her and you go ahead to get the raccoon doctor." Ace explained in an unusual soft tone while he looked down to Kid. "Okay, we go ahead to get help for Kitty~Kid! But don't you dare to harm her!" Sanji urged while Nami climbed again on his back as he lifted Robin back onto his arms.

"Just shut up and keep going." Nami commented a bit frustrated.

"What ever you wish for Nami~Swan!" Sanji replied and pass walked Zoro who just shock his head about his comrade as he followed them.

After some time Kid mumbled: "please, I promise to be a good girl, I do anything, but don't do it again Dad… please."

`That dirty swine!` Ace thought as his grasp got tighter, how could anybody do such a thing to a little girl?

"Ace?" heard the addressed person Kid weakly mumble, while she propped herself away from Ace body suddenly.

Ace looked worriedly in Kids glazed eyes, she still was sleepy. After some time Kid noticed that she had cried, so she averted her face and whipped her tears with her right arm away, before she looked coldly at Ace. When Kid was about to stand up Ace tried to stop her, "you shouldn't get up…", but it was already to late.

Again everything turned black around Kid and she sank unconscious back into Ace arms. "Oi Kid! Stay awake! Kid!" Ace wanted to awake Kid, but there was no use in trying, "Why do you think you've got to put up your big front, even if it's clear that you need someone to depend on?" Ace mumbled while he watched some minutes whether Kid would be still restless. Once he was sure that Kid was deeply unconscious he lifted her up as he stood up and followed the traces of the rest of the group. Ace, with Kid in his arms caught up with the Zoro, Sanji, Robin and Nami, who just had met Luffy.

The rest of the way the group traveled without further interruption, except that they almost lost Zoro out of their sight several times.

When Luffy, Zoro, Sanji (still with Robin in his arms and Nami on his bag) and Ace with Kid in his arms who was getting restless again, reached the camp they found both Usopp (who was holding his slingshot) and Chopper sleeping snuggled up to each other. Luffy and Zoro looked surreptitiously at each other while Sanji set Nami carefully down. While Luffy and Zoro sneaked up behind Usopp and Chopper, Ace set Kid down and tried to wake her up before she'd frail around herself again after Robin got off Sanjis arms and went to her tent to rest a little while longer. "SPIDER ATTACK!" Luffy and Zoro screamed as loud as possible, what caused Usopp and Chopper to jump awake and scream with panic while searching for cover. Compared to Usopp, who ran into a tent, Chopper hid behind a rock while rummaging in his pants pocket for a Rumble-Ball. Luffy and Zoro burst out into laughter eventually, when Chopper looked anxiously forth from his hideout. "EH… YOU BULLIES!" Chopper yelled when he realized that it was all a prank.

"Where is the spider! I'm gonna chase it away!" Usopp yelled with still shaking legs while he ran out holding a his slingshot ready to fire, because he had heard Luffy and Zoro laugh out loud so he knew that he was save no matter what.

"THEY PRANKED US!" Chopper screamed still doubtfully while Luffy and Zoro were wide grinning.

"Luffy, Zoro, stop teasing the raccoon doctor, your comrades are injured!" Ace said reasonably.

"Right, sorry…" Luffy and Zoro apologized while Chopper set his straight face on before he took his bag and walked towards Kid. Sanji and Nami were kneeling next to Kid and looked worried at her while Ace was trying to wake Kid up.

"Make way she needs some air!" Chopper ordered rebukingly. Ace stood up immediately and let chopper to Kids site while Sanji and Nami didn't move away.

"Nami are you alright you look a bit tired?" Chopper asked while he took Kids puls, "and where's Robin?" he added when he put a thermometer in Kids mouth

"Don't worry about me, I'm fine!" Nami stated and added, "Robin went to her tent she was a little bit pale after all"

"I have to get Kids fever down first then I'll go examine Robin." Chopper said after he looked a bit shocked at the thermometer.

"Where am I?" Kid asked when she opened her eyes and it was still dark around her. Kid stood up looking around, trying to find a point to orientate herself.

Kid figured that it was the best to not move away until she had some sort of orientation so she sat down on the floor eventually. Suddenly a door behind Kid swung open and the light from the outside lightened the room up. Kids eyes widened when she saw so many pictures on the wall, even though she had burned them after she had returned to this place, she recognized every single picture. When Kid heard a low-voiced weep she turned her startled face towards the light source and saw Him. Her father walked through that door dragging a young blond girl with a doctored leg behind him, Kid recognized that girl as her eight-year-old-self. Kid stood up without taking her horrified gaze from her father while she thought perplexedly: `What's going on? Why is he here?`. She walked slowly backwards the nearer the big man came towards her (even though she was by then a grown up woman she was still 3 heads shorter than her father). When her father threw her younger-self in front of her to the ground, Kid closed her eyes and winced back while turning her head away and ended up hitting her leg against a dresser. Kid opened her eyes hesitatingly and saw one picture she hadn't had burned, but she had cut out three faces from it: a family picture with her mother, father, her baby brother and herself when she was 8 years old in front of their house; That picture would be taken the day after that incident. When Kid saw her mother's happy face she was reminded that her mother choose rather a happy lie then see the ugly truth and how she just walked away when she needed her the most, she would never forget those moments. `I won't look simply away! I'm never going to be as weak as you!` Kid thought to herself as she forced her self to watch the scenario. But the trauma of this event transfixed her on the spot, so that she wasn't able to step in, but watching how her father kicked her younger-self in the stomach when she was trying to stand up brought tears into her eyes. "How dare you to run away?!" her father yelled as he pulled the little Kid up to her feet holding onto her hair before he hit her.

Kids younger-self screamed in agony when ever she was hit. "Please dad! I'm sorry, I won't do it again… I promise!" Kid heard her younger-self begging as she was pressed against the floor while her father took of his belt. "You're not getting away with a simple apology!" her father yelled as he hit her a couple of times with his belt buckle.

But then her father suddenly stopped the beating and threw his belt away as he said with a tone in his voice which made Kids hair stand on end: "I'm going to teach you a lesson you won't forget!"

He griped onto her hair and dragged her along with him as he walked upstairs. When Kid saw her younger-self getting dragged into the parents bedroom she snapped out of her paralyzation. With terror in her eyes Kid yelled: "NO! NO! DON'T DO THAT! PLEASE, DON'T DO THAT!" as she came rushing up the stairs.

When she reached the door she saw her father, who had thrown her younger-self on the bed, start to unclothe her younger-self who still tried to oppose. Kid felt how her panic was about to hit herself again so she spurted towards her father to knock him away from her younger-self, but instead of pulling him away she walked right through him and almost hit the wall. Kid turned around to make a second desperate attempt to allure her father from her younger-self. Kid tried to tear her father away with a jackknife but she fell again through him as if she was nothing but a ghost and ended up lying on the floor. Then Kid heard a painful squeal from her younger-self followed by whimpers of pain. Kid clenched her fist, so that her finger nails plunge into her flesh until she bled, as she heard her father moan over and over, she felt as helpless as she did back then. "Please stop it…" Kid pressed through her teeth as she tried to cover her ears while tears streamed down her face, but she couldn't help it his moans were stuck in her head.

After one last loud moan it became silence apart from a few bitter sob. "You're pathetic!" Kid heard her father scoff at her younger-self, "since your old enough for running away you might as well do a woman's job."

Kid heard how her father spit at her younger-self before he walked towards the door. He pass walked Kid before he stopped and turned around and looked at Kids younger-self with a steely glance before he said mercilessly: "you'll better tidy that mess up before your mom's coming home, otherwise…"

Never would Kid forget this glance her father gave her that day before he walked out of that room. When Kid finally managed to get up she whipped her tears off her face and turned around to her younger-self. She could read the terror in the eyes of this picture of misery as she slowly approached the bed. Kid sat down next to her shivering younger-self, who clasped her arms around her keens. Kid was gulping back her tears when she mumbled: "I'm so sorry that this is only the beginning of your suffering… but you'll come off stronger eventually" Kid tried to convince herself the moment her younger-self stood up and walked out of the room whipping her tears away. Kid watched her leave the room before tears streamed down her face again and she said to herself: "I hope so much we'll come off stronger…"

When Kid awoke, she felt that someone kept her jaw shut with both arms and pressed her head against his stomach while 4 other persons clutched her limbs to the ground. Adrenaline rust through her veins as her panic was about to hit her and with a strong jolt Kid freed both of her arms and legs, then she gripped on to that person who was holding on to her jaw and threw him over herself so that he crashed against two of the other persons. Kid jumped onto her feet, but sunk back to the ground immediately. "Kid, everything's fine! Stop panicking, I was the whole time around!" Nami yelled startled while Kid breathed heavily and looked bewilderedly around.

"Calm down Kid I told the others to hold you down because you maybe would have injured yourself, might even bit your tongue off! Everything's fine, so calm down!" Chopper explained while Ace who was thrown against Luffy and Zoro, stood up.

Nami let Kid breathe trough a couple of times before she asked hesitatingly: "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine!" Kid stated with a flat voice.

"I'm so glad you woke up Kitty-Kid!" Sanji said in relive.

Kid pulled herself together and stood up after she muttered: "stop calling me that."

"Kid you really should rest for a while longer. Because you moved too much around after the sting hit you the poison was able to spread out." Chopper tried to hold Kid back with reasoning, but Kid just threw the towel which stuck on her forehead to the ground, turned around and walked away without considering Choppers advice after she picked up her messenger bag.

"As I said I'm fine, you should rather look how Robin's doing." Kid retorted with a now more firm voice, she had figured that Robin was resting since she wasn't around with Nami and the others.

"Yeah but…" Chopper started saying when Kid was rummaging in her bag while she diverged from the camp.

"She's right you should have a look on Robin, don't worry I'll keep an eye on her." Ace promised after he saw that Chopper didn't know what the right decision was.

Chopper and Sanji carrying Nami, who convinced him that she didn't wanted to take the risk to let the poison spread out, went to Robin's tent eventually while Luffy narrowed Usopp from their adventure. While Zoro opened a bottle of saké, Ace followed Kid unnoticed by her, how he thought.

That was a very disturbing chapter for me; I just hope people took the warning from the top serious. I hope this chapter will be allowed to be uploaded, since I tried to write it as less graphic as possible.