Now that she'd put some distance between her and Law, Katrina slowed her pace before glancing back towards the direction she'd come. Law had called for someone to guide her through the maze-like interior of the submarine and up to the deck above. The brunette hadn't realized how large the inside of the Heart Pirates' underwater vessel truly was til being led out. It wouldn't be too far of a stretch to compare it to a labyrinth.
Shaking her head to help reset her train of thought, Katrina turned back around and continued the trek back for what should be the last time. She'd have to get what little belongings she had from the brothel, then she'd need to figure out her next move. Grove 19 was at least six Groves away from where she currently found herself, but given how high the sun was in the sky she guessed she'd get there before noon. As she made her way, she couldn't help but think back to the encounter she'd had with Law. From all she'd heard and read about the tanned doctor, she never would have expected him to seek her out for a simple 'thank you' or offer such a luxury as medical care without a cost. He repeatedly mentioned she owed him nothing, and yet the brunette couldn't help feel she owed him. It wasn't a feeling she enjoyed, Katrina hated owing people. Owing people is exactly what got her stuck with Jericho and the brothel in the first place. Thinking about the now deceased blonde, Katrina almost couldn't believe how easy it was. She could have killed him herself, but Jericho had made it rather clear that whoever he worked for would notice if he went missing. While Katrina had no fear of a worm like Jericho, the man behind the Jolly Roger she'd seen on some of the paperwork in Jericho's office was a different story. He was one of the Seven Warlords after all. How someone like Jericho managed to work for someone so powerful still made no sense to Katrina, but she supposed none of it really mattered at this point. Now that Jericho was gone, Katrina no longer had anything tethering her to the Archipelago. She'd regained her freedom. But for how long? She knew her brothers were searching for her and she no longer had a way to keep watch over her shoulder. Getting off the island came first, after that…
'You could come with us.'
Law's offer echoed for a moment in Katrina's mind and she found herself stopping in her trek back to the brothel. The last time she'd chosen to trust someone it hadn't ended well.
'Do you intend to live the rest of your life never trusting another person?'
Law's voice echoed again and this time Katrina frowned before letting the anger she felt at being asked that after everything she'd been through help push her to resume and quicken her pace. Her mind couldn't help but drift to the crew she'd once been a part of and to the man she'd come to love. She didn't need anyone else. Not if it was just going to end the same.
A young brunette of around seventeen ran as fast as her body could carry her. The wind caused her hair to whip her in the face as she all but barreled down the hill from her family's home. She'd heard her brothers had left the island with their parents that morning to see about a future career with the Marines. This was her only chance. She had to get off the island before they came back.
The young woman was so focused on escaping without one of the servants stopping her that she didn't see the red-haired man walking down the street until she'd collided with him. Bracing herself for the impact that never came, surprised blue-green eyes looked up to meet a pair of startled golden eyes. The next thing that caught her attention was his hair. The bright red locks seemed to flow like a fountain from his head, framing both his angular face and his toned body til they stopped a little before his lower back.
"Are you alright there little lady?"
Came a voice she hadn't been expecting and Katrina stared up at the man holding her in place. That's when she realized she was in his arms.
"Th-Thank you but I'm fine."
She said, blushing and stumbling over her words as she moved out of his arms.
"Well that's good. I'm sorry I ran into you like that, new island and all means I wasn't exactly paying attention to where I was going."
The man said as he offered her an apologetic smile that felt like it made her heart melt. He looked to be about two or three years older than her and from the sounds of it, he was either a merchant or a traveler.
"Hey, are you sure yer alright? You don't look that great."
The man offered concern and Katrina couldn't help glance back towards the house she'd survived in before turning back to the redhead. She had to do this or she might not survive.
"I'm fine, but please. Would you take me to the next island? I can pay you, but we must leave by tonight!"
Katrina begged, instinctively reaching out and grabbing the front of the unknown man's shirt. If she hadn't been so focused on trying to buy herself a ride off the island she'd have noticed how firm his chest felt beneath her balled up fists. As well as the satisfied smirk that appeared on his face before being replaced by a concerned frown.
"Are you in some kind of trouble little lady?"
The man asked as he gently took hold of her shoulders. Katrina worried for a moment the man might try to be a good samaritan and take her to the Marine base, then she heard him sigh defeatedly before hearing him speak again.
"I mean….I guess we can give you a lift to the next island."
Her mysterious savior said and Katrina felt like crying.
"We still need to restock before we head out. Stick with me if you don't want to get left behind."
He said as he gently pulled his shirt free of her grasp and started walking away. Katrina silently trailed after him, worried if she lost sight of him that she'd wake to find she'd never escape this nightmare.
"The name's Loki by the way. Loki Collingham. What's yer name?"
"Katrina."
Was the reply she gave, but chose not to share her last name in fear he'd be too scared to help or more inclined to return her to the estate. Her father was a well known Marine, he was due for a promotion to Admiral soon according to what she'd overheard Kuma and Sengoku talking about at the last Marine Corps Birthday Ball she'd attended with her family. Turns out it wasn't just her father that expected great things from his children. Katrina had given up on the hope the Marines would save her from her hell and deliver justice long ago. About six years ago to be precise.
Katrina tentatively followed Loki as he made his way through the town she'd grown up in. She'd tried keeping her face hidden from any of the townsfolk if they stopped for Loki to talk to them, but if any of them noticed no one said anything or acted on it. Eventually, Loki led the way towards the seashore and to a ship docked a ways away from the port of the island. It wasn't until Katrina saw the black Jolly Roger flapping lazily in the wind that she realized she might have just gone from one hell to another.
"Pirates!?"
Katrina said in a shocked whisper, more to herself than to Loki, but the auburn haired male heard her none-the-less.
"Hey, I know Pirates don't have the greatest of reputations but we're nothing like those trash who go around hurting innocent people."
He said, turning to face her but didn't make a move to close the gap between them. He was leaving the option up to her, she realized.
"Yer welcome to come with us if you want. If you don't mind the company, I can promise we can get you safely to the next island no problem."
Loki said, offering her that smile of his again. It kept making her heart melt. He seemed so carefree. It might have been the fact she was finally leaving the island she'd been trapped on for so long or it might have been the fact she wouldn't have to worry about her brothers and their sadistic game anymore. All she knew was she would owe this man and she'd find some way to repay him.
A noise pulled Katrina from her emotions and thoughts. Her eyes locked onto the location it came from as her hands went for her daggers, only to meet empty air. Wide blue-green eyes shot down to the spot on her person where her daggers should be. Her holsters were still strapped to the upper part of her legs, hidden under her shorts, but the daggers were missing. Katrina's mind reeled as she tried to think of when she might have removed them then froze.
'They've been removed and set aside for now.'
She recalled Law telling her something like that when she'd realized he'd first joined her in the infirmary.
'How the hell did I forget my daggers!?'
Katrina wondered as she cursed herself. The noise, created by some harmless animal that went on about its business unaware of the brunette's dilemma, was completely forgotten. Katrina glanced back the way she'd come with a disgruntled frown on her face at the fact she'd have to go back.
'I'll deal with that after gettin' my stuff.'
She finally decided, putting off seeing Law again so soon and once again resumed her trek to Jericho's Brothel.
After what felt like an eternity, Katrina found herself standing in front of the brothel that had been both her home and her hell for the last two years. Funny, when her mother had taught her of Heaven and Hell she didn't recall it having so many forms. She also thought you only went there after death yet here she was.
Pushing open the door to the brothel known as Jericho's, Katrina had never been more grateful that the bell that used to chime above the door to signal each new customer's arrival had fallen and gone missing long ago. Glancing around the room to hopefully avoid a confrontation with Claudette or any of the other girls, Katrina breathed a sigh of relief when she didn't see any of them on the main floor. Customers were seated in the lounge chairs or at the tables seeming to be enjoying themselves. As she made her way towards the stairs, Katrina saw a spot of blonde hair at the bar and she realized it was Claudette. She seemed to be arguing with a group of four men who looked to be wearing dark blue pants with suspenders, bright pink shirts, and ruffs around their necks. The men themselves were robust in build, but their arms and legs were rather thin. The weirdest thing about them, Katrina thought, was the white mime-like makeup they each had on their faces. Deciding to use this moment of distraction to her advantage, Katrina slipped up the stairs and headed straight for the room at the end of the hall that housed the items she was after.
Once inside her old room, blue-green eyes widened at the state inside. The few clothes she'd had in the closet had been ripped to shreds and thrown about the floor. Her pillow had been ripped open, her blanket tossed through her smashed window and left half hanging out it. The desk and bookshelf that once sat against one wall was turned over and papers were strewn about. Some were torn into bits. The mirror hanging on the back of the door was shattered and it looked like a storm had blown through the broken window. It looked like the girls had gone to town while she was away.
Kneeling next to her old bed, Katrina reached towards the wooden box underneath marked 'EXPLOSIVES' in large bold red text. It was an aged, flat faced pine box with trim on each of its sides. She had long ago carved out the bottom part and used the outer part as camouflage. If anyone were to have looked inside they'd have found nothing but a bag, some spare clothes, and toiletries she'd kept in her room. The explosives were long gone. Tipping the box to the side so her stash faced her, Katrina removed the cap to the hidden compartment to reveal what she'd come to collect. A small black velvet pouch with a golden drawstring sat nestled atop three weathered books. Katrina grabbed the bag from the box and placed the three books inside before pulling a fresh shirt from the pile of spare clothes inside. The yellow tank top fit loosely and the hem stopped a little ways from her belly button. The color went well with the light blue denim shorts she grabbed and pulled on after. She reattached the sheaths her daggers slid into under the legs of the shorts and made sure to check they couldn't be seen using the reflection of her bedroom mirror. Shattered or not, it still did its job. Speaking of her daggers, a frown made its way across Katrina's face as she realized she had to go see Law now. It's not that she hated the man, he just made her anxious. She didn't like the idea of someone else having a say in her future, but she wasn't sure if she could make it on her own. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Katrina decided she would handle that when she crossed that bridge. For now, she had to get out of this hell hole once and for all. She could figure out what she was going to do after that after the fact.
Katrina fought to keep the repulsed frown off her face as she heard the moans and creaks of the occupied rooms as she made her way back down the stairs. Once back in the lounge area of the brothel, Katrina scanned the room for any of the women and froze as her eyes locked with the scarlet gaze of a certain angered blonde. Claudette started apologizing to the customer she'd been with and Katrina chose then to try to flee. She made it maybe three steps before a familiar brown haired woman stepped in her way.
"Meredith."
Katrina said with a tight smile. The other woman didn't return the gesture, a frown instead was on her face as she placed her hands on her hips. Meredith was a rather pretty woman of around twenty-two with brown eyes a shade or two lighter than her hair. Her hair went down to her slender hips and had natural curls at the end that Katrina would never admit to being jealous of. Her hair produced curls, but only ever pretty ones on one side. The other was always kind of flat. Her bangs framed her face in such a cute way it was no wonder Meredith was a favorite among the customers. Her and Claudette were the top two ladies at Jericho's. Her fair complexion went well with the white blouse and brown corset she wore and a black skirt that was hiked far too high up in Katrina's opinion in the front. The top of her blouse and corset left open to expose her chest, as was Jericho's dress code.
"Just where do you think you're going?"
Meredith sneered and Katrina could already tell she wasn't going to be able to get out of this without a fight. She could already see the other three women making their way towards them and helping Meredith in her goal of making Katrina's life hell. The strawberry blonde and red-head worked together to bar the door and that left the single onyx colored woman to act as Meredith's backup and chose to take up a place right behind Katrina as if to prevent her from attempting to escape upstairs. Before Katrina could respond to Meredith's query Claudette was suddenly chest to chest with her, angrily glaring up at her as the blonde was slightly shorter than the young brunette.
"How dare you come back here after everything you've done!"
Claudette hollered, obviously not caring she was causing customers discomfort.
'You'd think you'd clear out your customers before somethin' like this.'
Katrina thought to herself as she rolled her eyes at these women. The fact they thought ganging up on her was a good idea was almost laughable. Almost.
"I never wanted to be here in the first place! I've only come for my things, but seein' how well you ladies took care of my room durin' my absence I see there's no reason to stick around any longer."
"And we're to just let you come and go as you please are we!?"
Claudette screeched and Katrina's eyes flashed from Aubrey and Shanelle to the blonde in time to see her step towards her with one hand raised back behind her head. Katrina's eyes narrowed on the blonde before stepping back and avoiding the blonde's slap resulting in Claudette to lose her footing when her hand connected with empty air and the momentum of her swing spun her around slightly.
"Really Claudette, we have no business with one another. Just let me go in peace."
Katrina tried to reason, but still preemptively slipped the second strap of her bag over her shoulder so it sat nestled between her shoulder blades on her back instead of over one shoulder. Angry people, let alone women rarely ever acted the way you wanted them to. Claudette was no exception.
"In peace? To hell with you! I lost Jericho to you, then you have him killed by your pirate lover and have the gall to come waltzing in here like you don't have anything coming to you. It sickens me!"
Claudette screamed, fuming as tears started to well up in her eyes. But Katrina ignored that, she was still stuck on one part of what Claudette had said.
"I'm sorry, my what!?"
Katrina asked absolutely flabbergasted that she and the other women thought Law and her had that kind of relationship. Maybe that was the only form of relationship that existed in these womens' minds. Now that was a sad thought.
"Oh don't even try to deny it, I saw the way he was watching you at the bar the other night!"
Meredith called, pulling Katrina's attention back to the other brunette. Sure the tan pirate captain was rather nice to look at, but to say he was her lover was one hell of a stretch.
"Look, I can explain. What happened was-"
Katrina started, but was cut off as Meredith started charging at her again.
"I DON'T WANNA HEAR IT!"
The blonde screamed at near banshee pitch as she reached her hands out in front of her as if to grab at Katrina in any way she could once she got close. Katrina sighed again before shifting her weight so most of it was on her left leg. She waited a few seconds and waited for Claudette's charge to lead her to come within striking range before lifting her right foot, bending it at the knee and bringing it about chest height. Then, without warning, Katrina stamped her right leg forward and honestly felt as if she had taken a step off the charging blonde's face for a millisecond before the blonde was propelled backwards through empty tables and slammed against the base of one of the support pillars to the brothel. Katrina had to bounce and balance herself on one leg before regaining her own footing from the force, she had to give it to Claudette. She'd really been coming for her.
"You bitch!"
One of the other women screamed, it sounded like Audrey though Katrina supposed that didn't really matter as she realized the other four were now converging on her in mixed swipes of nails, hands attempting to grab hair, and loosely flung kicks in her general direction. Claudette had disappeared in a blur of red and black fabric that was her outfit of the day, it too just as skimpy and revealing as all the other girls.
"Funny, I seem to recall tryin' to find a peaceful resolution to this."
Katrina replied dryly as she dodged Shanelle and Meredith as they both tried to slap her. She moved towards the door when she felt a hand on her shoulder spin her to face Lilia. Her onyx hair was in perfect ringlet curls as always and her makeup was as bold and beautiful as her outfit. Dark rich purple corset with a light cream blouse. Her skirt was a different style than the other women, with lace overlaying the frills and adding a gothic Lolita vibe Katrina was convinced was on purpose. For such a full-figured woman, Lilia preferred to act younger than her true age. Claimed it brought in more customers when asked.
"Hold her in place Lilia."
Shanelle called and Katrina felt another two hands grab a hold of her in an attempt to prevent her from fleeing. Katrina felt her lips pull up into a scowl and had finally reached her limit with these women.
Grabbing onto the flouncy cream sleeve of Lilia's blouse, Katrina yanked the older woman towards her with enough strength that she pulled her off her feet. Releasing her sleeve just as quickly as she'd yanked her forward, Katrina then stepped to the side and allowed the darker haired woman to fall flat on her face. Turning to the red-head that had also grabbed onto her, Katrina stepped towards her, planted her right foot before following through with her fist and landing a blow directly to the auburn haired woman's gut. The blow sent her across the top of a nearby table before she landed in a slump on the ground. This left Shanelle and Meredith as the only remaining two standing, though Lilia was angrily getting to her feet and wiping non-existent dust off the front of her skirt. Lilia glared at her before reaching up to tie her hair back while Shanelle decided she'd be the next to attempt to come at her.
Shanelle ran forward and attempted to land a punch at Katrina's face, but unfortunately for her Katrina dodged and returned with her own punch that didn't fail to hit her mark. As Shanelle went down, Meredith and Lilia circled her on either side. Meredith suddenly hollered as she charged forward making Katrina lock eyes with her, but instinct told her not to stay in place and as she stepped back Lilia stumbled forward and fell right into Meredith making them both fall to the ground in a heap. Katrina carefully stepped over the upturned furniture and crumpled bodies of the women before making her way out of the brothel. She truly had tried to end that peacefully.