Author's Note: Ahoy, me mateys and me nakama! Happy Talk Like a Pirate Day! Enjoy this chapter in honor of this holiday!
Disclaimer: I do not own Jack Sparrow, One Piece, Flogging Molly, space pirates, or anything else pirate-related.
Ch. 28: "Grief, Then Resolve."
Downstairs, Aki's screams went unanswered, as some of the Capricorns were getting ready to explore the backyard zoo.
"Ein, are you sure you want to do this?" Akari asked Ein.
"Don't worry, ojou-sama. We will still be on the royal family properties. Should we run into trouble, we will have Nan come and get you or Thierry," Ein explained.
"Hey! How do you know that I can fight?" Nan asked Ein, who chuckled.
"That's what they all say. Now, let's go out there and see the animals," Ein said before the group walked off. Akari sighed.
"Just another day for my servants. Right, Thierry? Thierry?" Akari called out to her absent bodyguard. "Huh. He must've gone drinking with Bixby."
Akari began to make her way downstairs to the wine cellar, where Thierry and Bixby went when they wanted to drink. A creaking noise followed her down the stairs. Akari thought nothing of this as she walked down the dimly-lit hall toward the wine cellar.
"Thierry, are you in here? I've been looking for you!" Akari called out as she approached the wine cellar door and knocked on it. Then, somebody wrapped their arm around Akari's neck. Akari let out a huge gasp of air before she managed to throw her attacker off of her.
"Thierry! If you can hear me, help me! There's somebody attacking me and it's tried to kill me! Thierry! Help me!" Akari screamed. Akari turned around, and she got a better look of the attacker, who only wore a black, hooded cloak covering him or her. Akari did a pirouette and kicked the cloaked person to the ground, who grabbed Akari by the ankle.
"THIERRY! HELP ME! HELP ME!" Akari yelled as she began to bang and kick at the wine cellar door while trying to get free from her attacker. Inside the wine cellar, Thierry and Bixby were trying to enjoy a nice drink, but, Akari was in major trouble outside.
"Sounds like Akari is in a lot of trouble. We better go and help her," Bixby said as he made his way to the door, which was locked. "Damnit!"
Thierry looked through the peephole, notcing that a block of wood was put through the door handle, trapping the two men inside. Thierry then got out a flintlock pistol and aimed for the door hinges.
"Stay back, Bixby. We are getting out of here faster than you can say 'the quick, brown fox jumped over the lazy dog'," Thierry explained before shooting the door off of its hinges. When the dust cleared, Akari and her attacker were nowhere to be seen. Thierry trembled for a second before dropping to his knees.
"I-I forgot to protect the princess. And… It's all my fault that I decided to go out and drink while we're in a period of danger! Damn it! Damn it all to Hell!" Thierry screamed before he broke down in tears.
"I'm sure we can find the princess, Thierry. We just need to look," Bixby tried to re-assured the green-haired bodyguard.
"Speak for yourself, Bixby! Akari's now in the hands of our greatest enemy thus far, and we don't have a clue where the Baba Yaga is! Look at me, Bixby, my biggest vice has been responsible for what could be her servants' biggest failure and regret! And, now, Akari is being tortured or murdered right now, and it's all my fault that I decided to take a short break for a drink! Look at me, Bixby! I have sunk to the lowest of the low, and it's all because I wanted just one glass of wine while Akari was with her nakama!"
Thierry stopped crying and snapped his fingers.
"That's it! Let's use Akari's nakama to lure the Baba Yaga out, and then we can either get information on Akari's wherabouts or kill the Baba Yaga! How is that for an idea?" Thierry asked Bixby, who didn't respond. Thierry turned around before realizing that he was gone.
"Bixby? Bixby?" Thierry called out before realizing something. "Oh, dear… Not him…"
Meanwhile, Ein and Oliver were showing some of the Capricorns around the small, royal zoo.
"Hey, Oliver, what are those animals?" Hana asked Oliver as she pointed to some pink pandas with white fur around their necks and eyes.
"Oh, those? Those are a special type of pandas that are an endangered species. Only a couple hundred of them are still alive today, and we have a few that we keep here and breed to keep them alive," Oliver explained before a small dodo with wings flew onto his shoulder.
"Hey! Get off of me!" Oliver yelled to the bird. Ein just laughed.
"I think it's feeding time for the hungry bird!" Ein announced as he pulled out a small pouch of bird food and gave it to Matsu. Matsu put some food in the palm of her hand and moved her hand toward the bird. But, she pulled her hand back at the last minute.
"Don't be shy, this bird doesn't bite," Ein said before Matsu moved her hand back to the bird, who began to eat the food from her palm. When the bird was finished eating, it cooed.
"See, it likes you," Ein said as the bird flew up onto Kazuma's head and began using its beak to comb through Kazuma's hair.
"Hey! What is this bird doing?" Kazuma yelled.
"Oh, it's just searching for lice to eat. It's common in birds like that," Ein explained.
"Get this bird off of me! I used a leave-in conditioner this morning!" Kazuma yelled as he tried to swat the bird off of his head, making everyone laugh.
"Looks like you have some competition, Ajax," Showtarou told his bird.
"Coo coo!" Ajax cooed angrily before crossing his wings and turning away from everyone.
"You have a very expressive bird," Oliver commented. "Is he one of those East Blue pigeons that have distinct personalities?"
"I don't know. All I know is that I got him for my birthday three years ago and he's pretty cool with me and my friends," Showtarou explained.
"He may come in handy one day. You never know when, but, you will realize it after your pigeon has helped you," Oliver explained.
"Ah! What a fantastic quote. By any chance, did you quote Marvelous Birds and Beasts of the Grand Line?" Kartik asked Oliver.
"Yep. I thought the preface had a good line, so I quoted it," Oliver explained. But, the good times were cut short, as Leni came running up to them.
"It's an emergency! Get inside the mansion and lock all doors and windows! The Baba Yaga has taken Bixby, a few of Miss Yuki-Rin's nakama, and Princess Akari!" Leni ordered.
Ending Note: Uh-oh, another cliffhanger. This is starting to turn into HetaOni. (Actually, no.)
Review if you finally want to see the Baba Yaga.