At the sight of her allies, Ellis breathed a sigh of relief. They're here. They actually showed up!

Then, a sweet smell reached her nose, and she realized Zoro's muscles looked shinier than she remembered. Plus, what's that stained all over his shirt? I just cleaned it yesterday!

Not to mention, Luffy was covered in sweat. What were they even doing, that they couldn't get here in time?

I swear, if they tired themselves out before even starting to fight…

The discordant groans of the downed pirates littering the slope had her turning back to face them. No matter how lucky it was for Zoro and Luffy to actually show up, it would be foolish to keep her back turned on an enemy.

The only one left standing was Jango, who just watched on. Ellis adjusted the grip on her blade.

Now's not the time. I'll be mad later. I need to be ready in case they try something while we're distracted.

"Well, it's about time," Nami said.

Zoro wore his bandanna, causing a shadow to fall over his eyes, upping his intimidation. Luffy, to the left of him, was out of breath with a face contorted in anger. He was hunched and sneering, baring his teeth and altogether looking like an animal about to strike.

"Woah, that was great!" Usopp breathed. "You guys are really that strong?!"

Luffy breathed heavily as he nodded.

"Could you have been slower?" Nami jabbed. "What took you so long?!"

True to Nami's character, the second she feels safe, she criticizes the people around her, Ellis thought fondly.

"You're the one who pushed me down that oil slick so you could get out!" Zoro replied, turning to her, visibly irked.

"It was an accident! I slipped, you fell! At least one of us made it out of there, that's better than both of us being stuck at the bottom."

OIL?!

They're making it really hard to keep her focused and her back turned. Do they KNOW how hard it is to get OIL out of clothes?!

"Then it should've just been you!" Zoro screamed.

"Straight north, he says," Luffy seethed. "That's just GREAT. I mean, how am I supposed to know which way north even is out here, huh?!"

…Does he not know the sun rises in the east? Is that not common knowledge?

"Shut up, you're the one who ran away so sure of yourself, ready to take on anyone!" Usopp responded, irritation coating his voice.

That was the first time Ellis heard him actually stick up for himself (not counting the first time they saw the butler). Especially to someone so clearly ready to start hurling punches. Honestly, she was kind of proud of him, all things considered.

Luffy's heaves evened out, and he calmly replied, "Well, I just got so excited, I started running, you know?"

"The sun rises high in the sky now," Ellis heard Jango comment as he tilted his head up. "That means Captain Kuro's very impatient." He turned to face them, squaring his shoulders head-on. Even through his heart glasses, Ellis could feel his glare settle on them. He shuddered. "Men! Don't just lie there! You can't tell me you're going to let them win, they're just a couple of idiots!"

Ellis observed as the pirate crew struggled to push themselves off the ground. Groans of pain increased in volume as, one by one, they started to stand up.

Jango rummaged through his coat. "The fact is, we don't have time to lollygag around here any longer." He pulled out his pendulum. "If our enemy is strong, then we must become stronger than them."

…I don't think that's how hypnotism works. Even if they get stronger, their minds would be blank. They'd just mindlessly charge, wouldn't they? Fighting mindlessly is just plain reckless.

Jango slowly swung the pendulum back and forth. "Here," he said in a soothing voice, "stare deeply into this ring."

The pirate crew all surrounded Jango as they peered at it.

"Now, I will count 'one, two, Jango,' and after that, you will all begin to grow stronger." His voice grows louder, "Your wounds will heal, and you will grow stronger still!"

Ellis observed the pirate crew, being sure not to look at the hypnotist just in case. She doesn't think it would work on her, considering she'd have to empty her mind and all that, but it never hurts to be careful.

"...So what is he doing?" Luffy blandly asked from behind her. "It looks weird."

"Looks like hypnosis," Nami observed. "He's trying to convince them they're stronger than they are, like that'll work."

Maybe he's trying to override mental limits. I've heard stories where in times of danger, enough adrenaline can cause people to do things like lift carriages to save babies and things like that. Maybe he's trying to do the same here, but manually?

…Though those mental barriers are there to keep that from happening regularly because doing that is actually damaging to the body. So why would Jango risk such a short-term solution that would only cause such long-term damage?

"Stronger…" Jango uttered.

…What's that twinkling sound?

"...STRONGER!" he roared.

No, seriously, where's that twinkling sound coming from?

"One…! Two…! JANGOOO!"

The pirates shouted and cheered as the pendulum stilled; the twinkling sound stopped.

"No way!" Nami exclaimed, almost drowned out by their opponents.

One pirate flexed his muscle before slamming his fist into the side of the cliff. A crack formed, slowly trailing up to the top before an entire chunk of wall… BROKE OFF IN A ROCKSLIDE?!

Ellis stared, mouth agape.

The pirates only jeered and pumped their fists as they were enveloped in a cloud of dust. There was howling and cheering.

At least she was right about their mindlessness after hypnosis. Not much of a consolation prize, to be honest. Just one hit, and I'd be down for the count.

"Just one guy completely destroyed the cliff!" Zoro exclaimed over the rowdy opponents. "That's what I call power!"

"I always thought hypnotizing people was a bunch of crap!" Nami said.

"That was just one of them! Imagine what the whole crew could do!" Usopp added.

"Now go!" Jango bellowed. "And strike down all who stand in your way!"

The opposing pirate crew cheered.

Ellis fixed her stance, prepared to continue the battle, no matter how much she dreaded it.

And then they charged.

"Hey, you guys!" Zoro shouted. "You might wanna move!"

Ellis glanced back to see him talking to her and the other two, pointing his thumb behind him.

Don't have to tell me twice.

She rushed over to Usopp, swinging his arm over her shoulder and scooping him up to lean heavily on her.

"Luffy," Zoro continued. "You and I will take it from here!"

Usopp sharply inhaled, whimpering at the pain, but continued to shuffle around the two power houses. Nami swooped in on Usopp's other side, helping them to the top of the slope and over to the side.

"Alright then, what now?" Ellis could barely hear Zoro ask Luffy over the charging pirates.

Ellis started to move Usopp toward the treeline.

"Wait, can you put me down by the edge of the cliff?" Usopp piped up.

Ellis side-eyed him.

"I need to keep an eye on the fight. Please." Ellis could feel the arm around her tense.

"...Sure," she conceded.

"Uh, Luffy?" Zoro asked uneasily.

Turning and moving to the cliff, Ellis was sure to keep them a distance from Luffy and Zoro. Somewhere too high up for someone below to target them.

She and Nami slowly eased Usopp to the ground before sitting on both sides of him, watching the fight.

Ellis made sure she was the one sitting closest to the treeline and the end of the slope. Just in case someone got past the two and decided to target them.

Luffy viscerally screeched, and Ellis shot her head in his direction.

"DON'T TELL ME YOU LET THAT FREAK HYPNOTIZE YOU, TOO?!" Zoro shrieked.

Luffy what?!

Is his head seriously that empty?!

Then Luffy charged forward, meeting the pirates head-on.

"GUUUUUUUUM…"

"He really is a simple-minded idiot!" Nami said, and Ellis had to agree.

"...GUUUUUUUUM…"

She didn't like calling people stupid, but Luffy might seriously be special in the head.

Luffy started swinging his arms, and it sped up enough to leave after-images of his punches.

"...GATLIIIIIIIIING!"

Then he collided with the enemy.

And was winning.

The pirates flew back like bowling pins, each and every one got hit by a punch.

Does he just have that good of an aim, or did the pirates just mindlessly let themselves get hit?

Ellis just sat there and observed.

…It could honestly go either way.

The after images faded, and Luffy's stretched out fist slowed to a stop before rebounding to him. Luffy had to spin as it retracted to get rid of the extra momentum, and settled into a stance with bent knees with his arms crossed in front of him, head hunched over.

Luffy tilted his head up so he could peer at the stunned pirates in front of him, now resembling a wild beast more than ever. Then, as he charged forward once more, the pirates turned and ran, screaming in fear, their prey drive running rampant through their body.

They all must be running on instinct right now. And, instinctually, they must know Luffy is out of their league.

Once the pirates reached the sandy beach, the change in surface must've been too much, since all of them tripped over each other and fell on their faces.

…Only for Luffy to run right past them. And Jango. Still screaming.

"Where's he going?!" Zoro said.

"The only thing over there is the ship. Why would he go that way?" Ellis mumbled.

Then, once he reached his ship, he ran right up to the stempost and–tore it off?!

"That's right! Tear it down!" Nami cheered. The rest of them just stared in bewilderment.

"He's gonna destroy our ship!" A pirate shrieked.

Luffy, who was continuously screaming this whole time, finally ripped it from the ship completely.

"He… actually did that…" Ellis said.

Luffy's screaming quieted. Then, as if in a horror movie, he slowly turned his head to face the opposing crew behind him.

"He's gonna crush us with it!" A pirate cried. "Everybody run!"

They all ran back up the slope as Luffy turned in his spot, muscles bulging.

How can he still move with all that weight? How isn't he getting crushed?!

"Captain, do something!"

Then Luffy started walking, with it still in his grasp. The ground was shuddering with each step he took. He started screaming again.

How is this physically possible?!

"One, two, Jango! You will fall asleep!"

The twinkling noise started up again. Ellis looked at the two beside her, but they didn't appear to hear it. Then again, they might be too busy watching Luffy defy reality.

"One… Two…" Luffy's steps faltered. "Jango!" He repeated.

Luffy's muscles shrunk back to normal and his screaming turned into snores. Then the stempost started tilting forward, falling toward the slope and the antagonistic pirates, kicking up sand as it hit the ground.

Ellis stared in disbelief at the unnatural silence that followed.

They all held their breath as they waited for the cloud of sand to dissipate.

As the scene cleared up, they could see the stempost on the ground. Some of the pirates were stuck underneath, having an arm or a leg getting crushed. Most of them, however, were just sprawled in the sand, coughing and groaning in pain.

She could barely see the red of Luffy's vest at the other end, his upper body crushed underneath the tons of wood.

Being made of rubber won't stop him from suffocating. How could he possibly breathe if his lungs were getting crushed too hard to inhale?

For a few moments, the battlefield was completely quiet.

"Looks like those guys are probably down for the count, don't you think?" Nami said to Zoro.

"I guess," Zoro responded.

"Maybe, but Luffy's still trapped underneath that cat! Just look!" Usopp said.

"Relax!" Zoro turned his head to them, smirking. "He's fine, you should really worry about your own injuries, by the looks of it."

Ellis turned to look over Usopp, startled at the amount of blood.

How could I forget? He could be bleeding out right now, and all I'm doing is watching other people fight. I'm not even doing anything.

"If Captain Kuro sees this, he'll kill us!" Ellis heard Jango exclaim in the distance.

If they're so sure of that, why won't they just run away? They're clearly outmatched, and even if they somehow succeeded to beat us at this point, and execute the plan, he'll still be pissed it wasn't followed to the t.

…Then again, if he truly faked his death and wants a fortune by killing Kaya, he may not want so many witnesses knowing he's alive…

With someone as cutthroat as him, I wouldn't be surprised if he was planning on 'getting rid of' his crew from the start. Tying up loose ends, and all that.

Ellis snapped her head to the ship.

There was movement.

"Who's on the ship?" Zoro asked.

"You guys are dead meat, now!" A pirate choked out.

"Meowban Brothers!" Jango shouted.

Ellis stared as two silhouettes appeared from the deck.

"Hey, Butchie! The Captain's calling us!" An annoyingly high-pitched voice called out.

"What?! They're not at the village yet?" A deeper voice responded. "How come they're still on the beach?"

"We still have our trump card!" Jango commented, smirking. "Come forth!"

The two figures shot up, flipping several times in the air, before landing on the stempost Luffy ripped off in a crouch.

"Yes, Captain?" A tall, spindly man with green hair and a severe hunchback said. He had heavy eyeliner around his eyes, as well as a line drawn vertically down his nose. He held his hands like claws–actually, there were claws on his hands. He also wore booty shorts. "Did you call for us?"

The sound of a cowbell had her look at the other guy. He was more bulky, with a mask over one of his eyes, similar to but not exactly like the mask in Phantom of the Opera. His other eye had very heavy black eyeshadow, and he had fangs like a vampire. He wore a bell around his neck. Also, he was shirtless and wore a cape.

These guys are… bold.

"Well, did you?" he asked.

Are they… both wearing cat ears?

"Siam!" The spindly guy stood up, striking a pose.

"And Butchie!" The bulky one mirrored the pose. The gleaming of his fingertips gave away he also had claws.

They both spun, then continued simultaneously, "Together, we are the Meowban Brothers!" They paused. "At your service!"

"Uhh," both Nami and Usopp said.

"Hm?" Zoro said.

"..." Ellis remained silent. Something's off.

The two new additions to the battlefield jumped off the stempost, landing in front of Jango.

"Butchie!" Jango said. "Siam! We absolutely must get up this hill, but as you can plainly see, our path is blocked." Jango turned to look at the slope. "If you could be so kind as to remove this obstacle, immediately!"

Zoro stared them down.

Butchie and Siam shrieked.

"No way, we couldn't do that!" Siam balked. "He looks too strong!" He turned to his partner. "Right, Butchie?!"

"Oh, yeah!" Butchie replied. "He's strong! Way stronger than us!"

"Huh?" Zoro said.

Ellis pursed her lips. "I don't trust this."

The more eccentric someone is, the more likely they are strong. Or overcompensating, but I'll go with strong in this case.

Siam stepped back, cowering, "Besides, we just guard the ship! Not fight people!"

"He's got a point!" Butchie added. "We're really not the guys you wanna send into battle."

"So, they're a couple of pansies," Usopp comments. "I guess they're not the trump card after all."

Ellis's mind was churning. "Aren't ship guards supposed to fight? You know, to protect the ship? And just two of them would mean they're decently strong, right?"Ellis furrowed her brows. "Strong enough for the captain to have confidence they can do the job. I don't like this."

Zoro eyed her.

"Siam," Jango ordered. "Just do it already!"

"What?! Please, not me!" He whimpered.

"And HURRY!"

"Okay," Siam said tearfully. "I'll go. Just stop yelling."

"The guy's crying like a baby," Nami said. "What are they doing down there?"

Siam wailed as he essentially hobbled with large strides, arms waving in the air, towards them.

"Of all people, why force that guy into a fight?" Nami continued.

"I'm going to tear you up with these claws!" Siam taunted amidst the wailing. "You just wait and see!"

His voice wasn't shakey or fearful. Is it a trick–?

"I'm a vicious killing machine and I'm coming for you!" Siam continued. "You're bad people!"

Zoro quickly adjusted his stance from something relaxed to being prepared to fight. Though, the grimace on his face showed he was clearly uneasy fighting someone so unwilling to.

"You come any closer and I'll cut you in half!" Zoro warned. Siam was now halfway up the path. "I'm not joking, I'll do it!"

The wailing suddenly stopped, and Siam launched himself at Zoro.

"It's a trick!" Ellis shouted.

"Not likely," Siam sneered at Zoro, claws clashing with his swords. "Too bad! It seems you fell for my little ruse!" He jumped away, Zoro's two sheathed swords equipped on his back. "I'm impressed you blocked me, considering what a brilliant performance I gave! Don't let the teeny bit of skill you have cause you to underestimate Siam of the Meowban Brothers!"

Siam licked his lips, making a weird moaning noise as he did.

"He has your swords!" Ellis shouted.

Zoro stared down at his waist in horror. Where his swords used to be.

"Are you missing something? Not that I would know anything about it…" Siam taunted. Zoro grimaced as he looked back upon his opponent.

"There it is," Jango muttered.

"Cat burglar," Butchie added.

"Give me my swords back," Zoro uttered darkly.

"Your swords?" Siam responded. "But you already have a sword, how greedy can you be?!"

Ellis gripped at the edge of the cliff, sharp rocks digging into her hands.

"Say goodbye, swords!" Siam mocked, taking them from his back. "Goodbye."

Then he threw them behind him. They skidded roughly on the rocky ground.

Zoro looked murderous.

"Well now, I feel lighter," Siam taunted.

Zoro ran at him. "You should take care with other people's things!"

He sliced at Siam's torso. Siam grimaced as he fell back from the momentum.

But… Ellis didn't see any flesh where Zoro tore his shirt.

Zoro used his momentum to keep running past Siam, reaching for his swords, but Siam jumped from where he pretended to fall.

"Above you!" Ellis shrieked.

But she was too late.

"You really have to be faster," Siam said, landing crouched on Zoro's back, gripping his wrists. "Because I'm agile… as a cat."

Zoro fell onto his face, skidding on the ground as Siam held his arms straight up behind him.

Ellis shot up, running to the start of the slope.

"Butchie!" Siam called. "You're up! Get in here!"

I can't throw my knives, that would just be giving them weapons! What do I do? What can I do?!

Ellis inched back, closer to the treeline. Closer to the bushes she hid the pot of coffee.

"Gee! Thanks, Siam!" Butchie said. He started running before jumping high in the air, preparing an axe kick and screaming. Nami and Usopp watched in horror as Ellis prepared herself in case they actually beat Zoro.

I'm the only one that would be left able to fight.

She could use the forest to fight dirty. Better than fighting out in the open as it is.

Ellis watched as Butchie got closer and closer to where Zoro was held prone, but right at the last second, Zoro rolled out of the way, just barely dodging.

Zoro rolled back, putting some space between himself and the two furries before ending in a crouch.

"Damn, Butchie!" Siam said. "He got away from you!"

"He's right there! Now hold him tight this time!" Butchie yelled.

"Careful, he's strong!" Siam fired back. "Stronger than I'd thought he'd be, even without all his blades." Siam struck a pose. "We'll get him for sure, this time!"

"You got that right!" Butchie mirrored his pose.

Zoro stood up from his crouch. "One sword technique is not my forte, fellas, but what the hell!" Zoro gripped his sword with both hands.

"Let's go, Butchie!" Siam screeched.

"Right, Siam!" Butchie returned. "Let's do it!"

They both screamed, "Pussy Willow March!"

P…Pussy? They said it with such a straight face.

Then they pounced, claws at the ready.

And somehow, with each repeating strike, Zoro kept blocking with just his one sword. The two cat dudes fervently struck him over and over, but Zoro was able to intercept each one that came at him. It was almost a blur, with how fast they all moved, the only definitive thing being the sound of metal clashing over and over again.

"Lead Star!"

…Until Zoro intercepted one of Usopp's projectiles.

"This is our chance!" Siam exclaimed, both him and Butchie exploiting the opening Usopp gave them, slashing at Zoro's chest.

He fell backward, blood splashing from his wounds as he shouted in pain.

"You're supposed to shoot at the bad guys, you idiot!" Nami shrieked at Usopp as Zoro pulled himself off the ground and into a crouch.

"But I did!" Usopp defended. "It was… it was like he moved in front of my shot on purpose!"

Is it a pride thing, or is it because Usopp and Nami are too injured to defend themselves? Is it because Siam and Butchie are too skilled for them to fight off? Just what is he thinking?

"But why would he do that?" Nami asked.

Zoro groaned in pain. "You dumbass! Don't help me! You wanna die?!"

Then Butchie and Siam ran at him once more, and Zoro pulled himself off the ground to intercept their claws.

"It's just a thought, but… maybe it's the two of us who just got saved," Nami said. "If you had actually hit one of those guys, they would've come after us instead." She paused. "And we wouldn't have had a chance holding up against that."

"What a guy," Usopp breathed. "All this time, he was worried about us."

Ellis just kept observing Zoro from near the treeline.

As long as Zoro only has the one sword, the fight is at a stalemate. If only we could–

"I'm gonna get those swords," Nami decided, sliding down the side of the cliff and running past the fight.

"Nami, no–" Ellis blurted.

"Nami!" Usopp called out, reaching out. The two observers could only watch in horror as she approached the swords, and Jango standing above them.

As Nami reached down for one of them, Jango stepped on it. Then he sliced down with his pendulum.

Not, not pendulum. It's a chakram. A weapon.

Nami cried out as she fell forward, colliding with the ground and laying prone.

"Nami!" Ellis and Usopp both cried.

"What do you need swords for?" Jango taunted.

Then Ellis felt a chill go up her spine.

Something was behind her.

Jango screamed. The Meowban Brothers paused, then screamed as well.

Someone was looming over her from behind her back.

"N…No! S..Sorry! I can–explain all of this!" Jango stuttered.

"The night has long since passed… So why is it you seem to have made no progress on the plan?"

"Captain… Kuro!" The long-forgotten crew on the beach stared in horror.

"N–no!"

"He–He'll kill us all!"

Zoro lowered his blade and turned his back on Butchie and Siam to face her and the presence behind her.

Ellis slowly lowered herself, reaching into the bushes beside her.

"It's all over," Usopp mumbled.

Nami whimpered in pain.

She grabbed what she was looking for, and fumbled with her other hand to take off the lid.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!" Kuro screamed.

Ellis spun around and, with the momentum, launched the lukewarm coffee from the pot right into Kuro's face.

A/N:

4.0k words.

Sorry for the long wait. I got my first hate comment! WOO!

Then my dog died. not woo :(

She was 16 though, so it was going to happen eventually. My family ordered her a pizza for her last meal, and we got to spend the day with her before bringing her to the vet, so it wasn't a bad way to go or anything.

Anyway, I've been working on the other chapters, and I've updated some of them. I'm going to update pretty much all of them, because I started reading the manga since I caught up with the anime, and I feel like the dialogue gives a bit more information. Plus there are a few things I feel would become a bit of a plothole if I don't fix it. There are also a few things I want to change that I feel would make more sense for Ellis's character later on. Feel free to keep an eye open for that. I'm not proofreading this just yet, so this chapter's also probably going to get updated too haha.