Author's Note: Change of plans. The next chapter will be the start of the Mr. Chung-Feng Arc and not the Playdate Arc or the Last Samurai Arc. As the title of the new arc implies, Aki and Heathcliffe will be major players in it.
Disclaimer: One Piece is the propety of Toei Animation, Funimation Entertainment, and Eichiiro Oda. Please support the official release.
Ch. 68: "Good News, Bad News."
Yuki-Rin didn't awake until the next afternoon. But, when she awoke, she felt really sick.
"How are you doing, Yuki-Rin?" Kazuma whispered to Yuki-Rin.
"I don't feel well…" Yuki-Rin weakly stated. Kazuma pulled the covers up and kissed Yuki-Rin.
"Get some rest. We leave the island tomorrow and we need you to be in good health for the voyage to the next island," Kazuma explained. "I went to Ageha earlier, and she wanted you to take this. They say it's a local cure on this island."
Kazuma pulled out a bottle of some type of elixer and poured it onto a spoon.
"Now, open wide," Kazuma instructed.
"Kazuma, I'm capable of feeding myself. I didn't break my arm or anything," Yuki-Rin sternly told Kazuma. Kazuma chuckled.
"Sorry, doctor's orders," Kazuma said as he stuck the spoon into Yuki-Rin's mouth. As soon as Kazuma took the spoon out of Yuki-Rin's mouth, she gagged.
"Ick! What is this crap?" Yuki-Rin cried.
"I don't know, but I heard from Heathcliffe that Ageha is buying a whole crateful of this stuff," Kazuma said as he got up. "Now, that medicine should put you to sleep in a matter of time, so I'll –"
"Wait, Kazuma!" Yuki-Rin cried. Kazuma stopped in his tracks.
"Yes, Yuki-Rin?" Kazuma asked as he turned around to face Yuki-Rin.
"Could you stay with me until I fall asleep? I mean, it's not much trouble, but –" Yuki-Rin asked before Kazuma cut her off.
"Of course, I will," Kazuma said as before snuggling next to Yuki-Rin. "Man, Molly had a comfy bed!"
"This is Molly's old room?" Yuki-Rin asked.
"Yes, it is. She showed me around earlier after… You know, she got over what happened last night," Kazuma said, saying the last part softly. "And, to make matters worse, Shireen fled the island."
"She… She did?" Yuki-Rin asked. Kazuma kissed Yuki-Rin.
"I'll tell you later. Right now, you should get some rest," Kazuma whispered. Yuki-Rin smiled as she closed her eyes, falling asleep to the sounds of the rain hitting the window and Kazuma's breathing.
"Wake up, Yuki-Rin! It's almost time for dinner!"
Yuki-Rin awoke to Hana pulling off the bed sheets. Yuki-Rin looked to Kazuma, who was asleep against her.
"Dinnertime?" Yuki-Rin asked. "Where's Molly?"
"She went out. Shireen fled the island, so Molly went to her friend Cormac's house for info on her whereabouts," Hana explained. "Now, get up, or else I'll make you get up."
With a groan, Yuki-Rin pushed Kazuma off of her and got off of the bed.
"That's a good captain," Hana said as Kazuma began to wake up. Hana glared at Kazuma. "You! It's time for dinner!"
"Not now, Hana," Kazuma said, his voice sounding groggy from sleep.
"Don't give me that," Hana said sternly.
"What's for dinner?" Kazuma asked.
"Just toast. Why? Were you planning to stay asleep until we go back to the Hyperion?" Hana asked.
"I wasn't, until you said we were having toast," Kazuma explained. Hana threw a pillow at Kazuma.
"You can go hungry! No going back to bed!" Hana yelled. Yuki-Rin sighed as she went into the living room, where Molly was entering the apartment.
"Shireen's gone?" Yuki-Rin asked.
"Yeah. She fled the island last night after Liam died," Molly explained as she hung up her coat. Yuki-Rin sighed.
"Alright, then…" Yuki-Rin said. "Dinner's ready, if you're hungry."
"I'm… Not that hungry meself," Molly said as she laid down on the couch and pulled the blanket over her. The room was only silent for a few seconds, until a somebody knocked on the door.
"I'll get it," Yuki-Rin said before she answered the door. Molly couldn't see or hear whoever was on the other side of the door, but she could hear what Yuki-Rin was saying. "Who are you? I see. You're here to see Molly? Yes, she's here. Of course, you can come in. Oh, me? I'm her half-sister, Yuki-Rin."
Then, two people entered the apartment. One of them was woman was the dark-haired woman who gave Molly the shawl the pervious day, and she was accompanied by a man with reddish-orange hair and blue eyes. Molly's eyes widened.
"Molly?" The woman asked.
"Mum… Da… You're alive?" Molly cried as she ran up to her parents and hugged them. "I thought you two were killed by the bloody Tenryuubito! They took me away from Erin Island and told me that they killed you! They even showed me your remains! I'm so glad you lived!"
"What's going on?"
Hana and Kazuma entered the room, surprised at the newcomers and Molly's sudden change in mood. Molly grinned.
"We'll tell you everything," Molly said. A few minutes later, the Capricorns were listening to the tale of how Molly's parents survived.
"You faked your own deaths? That's pretty impressive, considering that the Tenryuubito were after you," Hana commented.
"What did you do to piss off Yuki-Rin's mother? Serve her the wrong drink?" Kazuma asked.
"Saint Ayame visits this island every year, since she is the protectorate of this island. When she visited two years ago, she saw Molly in the streets and followed her home. She told us that we had twenty-four hours to turn Molly over, or else all three of us would be enslaved. So, me wife and I sent Molly out for the day, and we made two straw dolls. We stuffed the dolls in a closet, wrote a fake suicide note, and fled the island," Molly's father explained.
"But, when we returned a few days later, Molly was gone. Those Tenryuubito bastards took her away from us, and we were so bloody angry at them," Molly's mother explained. "Because of Saint Ayame and her cruelty to the people of Erin Island, we have to go into hidin' every year for a week."
"That's harsh. I can't believe my own mother would do that," Yuki-Rin commented. Molly's father dropped his teacup in response.
"You're… The bloody daughter of that bitch?" Molly's father cried.
"Mr. O'Flannigan, calm down, please," Yuki-Rin said. "I don't even like my own mother. She's cruel, wicked, and sadistic. Both Molly and I have suffered beatings, groundings, and even threats of slavery at the hands of Saint Ayame, and it's all because of my dream to become a pirate. I managed to make my dreams come true, but with some restrictions – My crew's actions have to be low-key so we don't attract the attention of the Marines and/or the World Nobles, we can't really fight other pirates unless we can get bounty money off of them, and we can't do anything about the Tenryuubito. Some days, I fear that I will be caught by my mother or her associates. But, even though the Grand Line and the Four Blues are big places, I managed to run into my mother once under the cover of a disguise. Thankfully, she didn't recognize me, but I fear that she will see through one of my future plans to hide from her one day."
Everyone grew silent.
"Is that so?" Molly's father asked as he raised an eyebrow. "In that case, you and your crew have to leave the island. Saint Ayame is making her annual visit, and she arrives here sometime tomorrow."
Yuki-Rin grew pale.
"Oh, crap…" Yuki-Rin commented to herself. But, Molly's parents were busy, as they were gathering various things such as food and blankets.
"Yuki-Rin, is your navigator with you?" Molly's mother asked Yuki-Rin.
"That's me," Hana said. Molly's mother gave her an Eternal Pose.
"Although the Log Pose for this island resets after two days, it is of utmost importance that you leave this island as soon as you can. This Eternal Pose will take you to Longjing Island, which is a day away from here," Molly's mother explained to Hana.
"But, our Log Pose hasn't reset yet. We have to hide somewhere!" Kazuma cried.
"What about the Hyperion?" Yuki-Rin suggested.
"But, where? There's a small chance that if your mother arrives while we're here, she could inspect the ship!" Kazuma cried.
"Molly and I will hide in the cargo hold. The only two people who usually go down there are Sebastian and Enlai, and nobody else knows where it is. I've tried looking for it once, and I've never found it," Yuki-Rin explained.
"It could work, but you two will need some company," Hana explained.
"Who?" Yuki-Rin asked.
"We need to hide Aria, Heathcliffe, Holden, and Soren, too. There's no telling what a Tenryuubito like Saint Ayame would do to a Revolutionary like Aria, and there's always the possibility that Saint Sarutobi will also come here," Hana explained. Yuki-Rin looked to the clock, which read 9:15. They had twelve hours at the most to complete their plan.
"Let's do it," Yuki-Rin said.
Ending Note: Is it bad that I was listening to the live version of We Are! while I worked on this chapter?
Review if you want to see the Capricorns make their escape from Yuki-Rin's mother.