Chapter 2: Remember
The mystery man and Cheryl both laughed and continued to run around the town, enjoying the adventure they were on. Mary, Cheryl's mother and the man's doctor, did her best to keep up, but she was getting tired.
"How does he have so much energy." She wondered. However, she couldn't help but smile as her daughter looked like she was having a lot of fun with him. It's been a while since she last saw her daughter laugh as much as this. Ever since her father was killed during the war 7 years ago, her daughter was a very introverted person. She stayed home a lot.
By spending time at home, she learned from her about being a doctor, but other than speaking with patients, she never really got out much to play with the other children. There was something about this man that just seemed to bring about the joyfulness out of not only her daughter, but surprisingly herself as well. After all, even she had a hard time getting back to normal after he husband's death. She seemed to feel lonely and wanted to spend her time with her daughter. It was the only thing that made her happy. She was slowly breaking out of it, but she still couldn't forget the pain of the loss of her beloved.
"Okaa-san! Can we buy some candy!"?" Mary lifted her head and saw her daughter waving her hand and pointed towards some candy for sale. She would normally refused, but when she saw the man look at her as if he wanted some too, she sighed.
"Alright, it's the least I can do." She told him. She brought some candy and gave them to the two. "My thanks, for saving my daughter." She told him. He looked joyful as he took the candy and gave her a toothy grin.
"Thank you!" Mary found herself blushing and turned her head to hide the embarrassing redness from her cheeks.
"D-Don't worry about it." She told him.
"Hehehe...Okaa-san is embarrassed..." She heard Cheryl say and she felt her red cheeks get redder.
"I'm not!" The man only laughed before eating a piece of candy.
"Yummy!" He exclaimed and handed some candy to Cheryl who took it gleefully.
Mary looked at the two and felt a warm feeling in her chest. The scene reminded her of the time her husband would carry Cheryl the same was he was. She missed him dearly. She knew it was seven years, she still felt love for him, but maybe she really did need to move on. She eyes the man who was having a blast with her daughter and wondered if maybe this was the time to do so.
"Ummm..." She started,, but was interrupted when the New Marines approached the trio.
"Excuse me." All three looked over to see the light green tinted outfits of the New Marines. There were only two of them, the Admiral who previously announced his name as Koby and the female marine commander under him. "We heard about the incident that happened at the town square. We hope you are all safe."
Mary sighed. She hated that he interrupted her asking the mystery man to Dinner with her and Cheryl, but smiled at the marines. "Yes. We are fine."
I see. That's good." Koby responded with a smile. "Don't worry, we have taken in the man in question and will provide justice for his crimes." He told her.
"I see. That's good. You know, I still don't trust you guys, but it's better than just letting that man roam free again." Koby frowned a bit, but he understood her lack of confidence for the New Marines. It wasn't only seven years ago since the war happened and the reputation of any government body has weakened among normal civilians. Everyone discovered the true intentions of the previous World Government. Even Koby was left in shock that a powerful being was in control when the Government was supposed to be neutral to everyone.
It was a dark day, but he admitted that it was needed. If it was for a certain crew, no one would have known the truth.
"I agree." Koby told her. "Thank you again. We will take it from here." He told her as Mary nodded. "However, we do have a question." The doctor raised an eyebrow. "We were told that during the incident, you're daughter was taken hostage, but was saved by someone who attacked the perpetrator. Is he perhaps..." Koby turned his attention away from Mary to the mystery man.
The black haired man paid no mind to what was happening and was happily chowing down on the candy and giving some to Cheryl. Koby stared at the man. There was something familiar about him, but he couldn't put his finger on it.
"Ah, yes. This is the man who saved my daughter." Mary told him. "He currently is a patient of mine. he was found only earlier today with no memory of who he was. He has amnesia." Koby looked back at Mary and felt sympathetic over the man's condition.
"I see. I'm sorry to hear that." He looked back at the man and took a couple of steps forward and lowered his head a bit. The man looked over at him, tilting his head slightly. "Thank you, for saving these people. We of the New Marines, thank you for your help."
"No problem, shishishishi!"
Time froze for Koby. His eyes widened as a big as saucers. He slowly began lifting his head up. His eyes stared and examined the face of the man that just spoke. He had a big toothy grin on his face. His beard and long hair covered most of it, but there was no way Koby would ever forget that grin. An image of a former friend, ally and rival flashed before the man's face and it looked like an almost exact replica of the man he once knew. A man he thought died seven years ago.
"Koby-san?" The female commander called out the Admiral's name, wondering if something was wrong with her Admiral and love interest.
"N-No way...it can't be..." He muttered. The commander, whose name was Hibari, raised an eyebrow at Koby and then looked over at the man he was staring at. She didn't notice anything particular about him, which made her more curious about Koby's reaction.
The mystery man stopped grinning and stared at Koby. He didn't know who this pink haired man was, but he did find his staring to be a little rude. "W-What?" Cheryl tilted her head on the man's shoulders, clueless about what any of this was about. Mary looked back and forth between the two and did notice the weird expression on the Admiral's face. To her, it looked like this Admiral knew who this mystery man was.
"Um..." She spoke. "Do you know him?" She asked Koby.
Koby gulped. He had conflicted thoughts. 'No...no...this can't be...this person couldn't be...no...' Koby wanted to believe this was who it was, but he also didn't want to wrong. There was no way the man standing before him was that person. The person he owed his career and dream to. No, he died seven years ago in the war. This person couldn't be him. However, everything about him was giving him hope. Hope that he thought he lost years ago. The same height, hair color, voice and the laugh. The very laugh he knew only belonged to one person. However, there was one way to find out. "I'm sorry...this might be a strange request, but...can I have a handshake?"
"Huh? Why?" The man asked, suspiciously.
"Please!" Koby suddenly raised his voice, surprising everyone.
"Koby...san..." Even Hibari was surprised by his reaction. She looked at Koby's jaw that had he was growing a small stubble out of, and saw it shaking.
Mary had no idea what was going on and looked over to the man. He looked back at her and she shrugged. "Up to you..." She told him. She was indeed curious however. If this man did know who her patient was, then it definitely would help him get his memories back. At least that's what she believed. Though, a small feeling in her chest also was afraid of the result.
"Hmmmm..." The mystery man looked back at Koby. He then handed the bag of candy to Cheryl and raised his arm to accept his request.
Koby felt his heart race. Sweat beaded down his face. He never felt so nervous. He was more nervous than he had ever been before. Not even during the war seven years ago was he this nervous. He gulped in anticipation and raised his own arm to give the man a handshake. If it was him, then he would also have that power. Their hands got closer and closer until they were just mere inches away.,
"Admiral!" Everyone jumped a little at the sudden yell from one of his subordinates and cursed him. He turned around and watched as one of the marines ran up to him and saluted. Cheryl saluted back playfully, which the man noticed and chuckled before saluting as well.
"What is it?" Koby asked the marine grunt.
"We received a call from the Fleet Admiral, he is requesting a transponder conference with you." The grunt told him. Koby clicked his tongue in annoyance.
"I see. Very well." He turned back to the man and eyed him. "I'm sorry. I apologize for the weird request. However, if you don't mind, I would like to meet you later tonight. There are some questions I wished to ask you." The man tilted his head in confusion. Koby then turned to his doctor. "I apologize if this is intrusive, but would you mind if we joined you for dinner?"
Mary looked at her the Admiral with widened eyes. Even Hibari was shocked by Koby's question, feeling slightly jealous. Mary thought about it as she looked over at the man, who looked confused about the whole thing. She sighed. If this man knew his identity and could help him, then that would be the best choice for his health as her doctor. However, for her personally, she didn't want to happen. She actually became fond of him. With the way he was around Cheryl, she didn't want him to leave. What if Cheryl lost her smile again. She didn't want that to happen.
However, she knew in her heart what the correct choice was. "Fine. We would be glad to have you."
Koby smiled and lowered his head. "Thank you. I greatly appreciate it!" He took a glance over at the man and lowered his head to him, before turning around and walking back. Hibari walked beside Koby and looked over at him.
"Koby-san...is everything alright?" Koby didn't answer for a few seconds.
"Maybe...but I won't know until tonight." Koby responded. Hibari only looked at him questionably, however didn't pry too much into it. She would find out later that night anyway. Like hell she was going to leave Koby alone at some other woman's place.
"Well, that sure was strange." The man spoke as Mary sighed and looked at him.
"Hey, are you sure you don't remember him?" The man shook his head.
"Nope." He replied and went to grab another piece of candy from the bag. Cheryl giggled as she grabbed a piece of candy as well. Mary smiled at the two. Looks like she was going to have more people over for dinner.
~OP~
Mary and the mystery man walked back to her home, walking side by side as Cheryl fell asleep from all the excitement and was getting a piggyback ride. She was hugging him tightly as Mary smiled at the sight. The sun was setting and she had to admit, she had more fun today than she had in years. She looked over at the man who stared ahead and smiled at him. She didn't know why, but she could feel this glow, this light emitting from him that made her feel happy and joyful.
She didn't understand why she felt this way. All the years since her husband's death, she felt miserable, depressed and lost hope so many times. Yet, she kept on living for her daughter. Her daughter was her reason. She tried everything to make her happy, but even she had a hard time. They preoccupied themselves in their work so they kept themselves busy, but they never felt a great sense of joy or warmth until today.
She didn't know what caused this from the man, but she was grateful. He was such bright spot in their gray world. She didn't know she could thank him for everything he had done for them today. They spent all day together, going around town, meeting people, going to parks and playing. It was a wonderful day full of joy.
As they got closer to her clinic, she dreaded having the Admiral stopping by for dinner. She feared that after tonight, the man would disappear from their lives and they would go back to their gray life. However, she knew she shouldn't be selfish. He was her patient and she had a rule about getting closer to any of her patients.
She looked over at him again. "Maybe she could make one exception.. She shook her head. 'No...he has amnesia...for all I know he could be a horrible person...' She knew that was a lie. There was no way he was a bad person. After all, a bad person wouldn't be emitting such a warm glow of happiness.
The man looked over at Mary and saw her shaking her head. "Hm? What's wrong?" Mary was snapped from her thoughts due to his voice and raised her hands a bit.
"Ah no, it's nothing. Just thinking about things." She replied.
"I see. Man, I'm hungry. Can't wait to eat." He said changing the subject. Mary sighed, but smiled at him.
"You really are a glutton." She muttered.
"Huh?"
"Nothing, don't mind it." He only tilted his head curiously.
They didn't speak for the rest of the way. They soon arrived back at the clinic and were surprised when they saw the Admiral and commander he was with already there, waiting for them,
Koby spotted them and approached the trio. "Please excuse me for getting here early." he apologized. "This is just...something I need to figure out...for my own sake" Mary eyed him suspiciously, but she could tell he truly meant his words. He recognized her patient and if this was a way for him to regain his memory, then she'll suck it up and accept the end results.
"It's alright. Please come in." She lead them inside.
"Thank you." Koby and Hibari entered followed by the mystery man and then Mary herself.
"Please wait a moment as I put my daughter to bed." Mary told her guests.
"Of course." Koby nodded and watched as she took her daughter from the man. She hugged her daughter close to her and headed to her room upstairs. This left Koby, Hibari and the man in the same room.
To say the atmosphere was awkward, that would be an understatement. The man however, didn't feel any awkwardness and couldn't help himself to the kitchen to look for food.
"How rude..." Hibari commented. Never did she think she see a patient of a doctors just rummage through their kitchen for food.
Koby however, stared at him. This was nothing more than another check mark on his list. More and more his suspicions and hopes increased. His heart raced against his chest. If this person was exactly who he thought it was, he didn't know how he could handle the emotions. Not only him, but so many other people. However, he couldn't just claim this mystery man to be who he thought it was. He had to make sure.
"I'm back." Mary announced as she returned. She looked over to the man in her kitchen looking for food. And got a little annoyed at the slight rudeness. "You really can't wait, can you?"
The man turned to her and chuckled. "Shishishishi. Sorry..."
'It really can't be a coincidence...' Koby thought, hearing his laugh again.
Mary sighed and walked to the kitchen. "Go sit down, I'll bring dinner when its done." She told the man.
"Shishishi! Okay!" He rushed over to the table and sat down, swaying and bouncy back and forth in excitement.
Koby observed everything about the man and it was all too much of a coincidence. There was no way another man would act similar, have the same laugh, the same quirks as the man who helped him accomplish his dream.
"Make yourself at home, Admiral-san, Commader-san." They both looked over and nodded, thanking her.
"Do you want any help?" Hibari asked, wanting to try and cook something for Koby to impress.
"Thank you, but you are my guests. Please, sit and relax, you must have had a long journey sailing the seas and keeping our world in peace." Mary told her.
'A-AAngel...' She complimented her in her head, blushing slightly.
"Commander Hibari...let's have a seat." Koby told her.
"Yes, Admiral Koby-san!" Koby chuckled at her enthusiasm and removed his admiral coat to hang it on the chair and sat down. He sat down across from the mystery man and observed him.
"Food...food...food...food..." He kept repeating over and over again as he swayed back and forth. The hunger for food was such a huge piece of evidence for Koby, but he couldn't just go with that. He tried examining the man's face, but his hair and beard were blocking most of it, so he couldn't even properly see the possible scar he might have under his left eye.
The man swayed for a bit before he felt Koby's eyes on him. He then stared back and furrowed his eyebrows a bit. "What?"
"I apologize...I don't mean to stare...it's just...you look very familiar to someone I knew once." Koby told him as he tried to spy any sort of reaction from him that he could spot. However, the man showed nothing, just a blank expression. Something Koby realized, would also be just like 'him'.
"Hmmm? I see." He responded before returning to swaying back and forth.
"Do you mind if I ask you a couple of questions?" Koby asked placing his elbows on the table and clasping his hands together.
"Sure...though I don't remember anything..." He replied honestly.
"That's fine. Just answer any questions as honestly as possible." He told him. "I guess my first question would be, do you know your name?"
"Nope." Koby wasn't surprised, but he wanted to make sure. He wanted to see if he got any sort of reaction out of his facial expression.
"Does the word, pirate mean anything to you?" Hibari was surprised by the question.
"Pirate?"
"Yes. Does it ring any bells?"
"No."
Still the same blank expression.
"Okay, how about..." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "...does Straw Hat mean anything to you?" Hibari's eyes widened at the Admiral before looking over to the man.
"No."
Koby stared at the man, hoping to see some sort of reaction. He just needed anything.
"Hmmm...what about Pirate King?" The man continued to have a blank expression.
"Pirate King? There's a pirate king?" He tilted his head in confusion. Koby felt a little frustrated. Was his memory loss so severe that none of the questions he asked sparked any sort of memory.
"Yes...well...yes and no...it's a little complicated...but let's move on..."
"Koby-san..." Hibari slowly pieced together what Koby was trying to do. She knew how much that person meant to him, but she worried about his mental health. He died seven years ago. This person couldn't be him. She didn't want him to go through this again. He had already accept his fate, and it took him a lot to actually admit it. She didn't want him to suffer again.
"It's fine, Hibari...I just need to get this off my chest." He told her with a smile and then returned to the mystery man. "Meat?"
"I like meat!" Koby finally got an expression out of him that wasn't his blank face, but it really wasn't something concrete.
"Portgas D. Ace?" The man's facial expression returned to being blank.
"Whose that?"
Koby squeezed his hands tightly. 'If Ace didn't work, then what would? Should I name is crew mates? No...I wanna save that as a last resort.' Koby thought about what else to say. He didn't want to scare the man from his questions, so he was trying to be very careful. "Red-Haired Shanks."
The man finally made a face that was different. Koby's heart raced when saw it. Was this it? Did he break through.
"Red-Haired...Shanks...that's such a cool name...whose that?" Koby almost fell out of his seat. He couldn't believe that the expression he had was only one of awe. This was starting to get frustrating.
"G-Garp-san!"
"No."
"What about Roronoa Zoro-san!?" He yelled out, standing up, a little frustrated with having to use his last resort.
"No."
"Black-Leg Sanji!-san"
"No."
"Usopp-san!"
"N-"
"Nico Robin-san! Franky-san! Chopper-san! Brook-san! Jinbe!-san Nami-san!"
The man lowered his head as Koby shouted out their names. "N-"
"PLEASE TELL ME YOU REMEMBER YOUR OWN CREW! YOUR FRIENDS!" Koby' shouted with tears in his eyes. His own crew. If this was him, then he wouldn't forget his crew. Was all this just a farce? Was this really not him? He couldn't believe it. Everything fit. Everything fit so why couldn't he remember. "M-Monkey D. Luffy..."
"Koby-san..." Hibari whispered his name as tears formed in her eyes.
"Please...tell me...does the name...M-Monkey D. Luffy...does it mean anything...to you...?" His head was lowered as he clenched the table sheets tightly. Mary who was coming from the kitchen with the food, stopped when she heard the commotion and looked over at the table. She blinked as she thought she heard a familiar name. "Please...tell me...are you...are you Monkey D. Luffy!?" Koby raised his head and cried out his question. Tears streaming down his face.
Mary gasped and dropped the food when she heard the name. 'No way...Monkey D. Luffy? The man who... was the leader of that pirate crew that fought against the former World Government?' Mary couldn't believe she heard those words. Was this man that pirate? The new Pirate King? She was taken care of that man?
"Ah! Are you okay?" Hibari asked Mary seeing her drop the plates. Koby turned his head as well, feeling guilty that he caused a possible injury to a civilian.
"Ah, I'm sorry...I..."
Mary shook as she realized who was in her home. The man who was responsible for changing the world. The man who her husband fought against and then joined with when the old World Government betrayed the people of the world. Was this man with amnesia really that man? She looked over to see if there was any inclination of that being the truth. She placed a hand to her mouth.
"Urghh..." Koby and Hibari turned to the man who made the noise. The man suddenly grabbed his head. "...it hurts...my head...urgh..." He suddenly got up and stumbled around the room. He got close to the wall before shocking everyone when he slammed his head against the wall.
"Hey1 Stop that! You're hurting yourself!" Hibari shouted at him as Koby and Mary looked with bewilderment at his actions. He placed his hands on his head and starting screaming. Cheryl, who awoke from the loud noise, watched from the stairs as the bearded man was slamming his head against the wall. She started feeling scared.
The man's head was going in a spiral. It hurt incredibly badly. He slammed it against the wall again, in hopes the pain would go away. However, no matter how much he tried, it just wouldn't go away. The room began to spin and the pain only increased.
"Ahhhhhhhhh!" He screamed and shook his head. Koby felt guilty, but he needed to know the truth. Was this actually him? Was this actually the man who changed the world. Was this really Monkey D. Luffy!?
The man screamed again and he fell to his knees. He slammed his head down to the floor and did so several times.
"Stop!" Cheryl suddenly screamed as she came down the stairs. "Please stop hurting yourself!" Mary rushed over to her daughter to prevent her from getting closer. She didn't want her to get hurt in case the man went crazy and accidentally hurt her.
"Ahhhhhh!" He screamed over and over again with every slam of his head.
"Koby-san! We have to do something!" Hibari told her Admiral. However, Koby just watched. He hated watching this scene unfold, but he didn't want to interrupt. What if this was the only way. The only way for him to remember. When Hibari saw Koby not move, she frowned in worry. "Koby-san..."
The man had thousands upon thousands of images appear in his head and the more he slammed his head, the more appeared. It hurt. He wanted the pain to stop. He wanted it to stop.
Remember...
He heard a voice. A voice that sounded familiar.
Remember who you are...
Remember!
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The man slammed his head hard as he broke the wooden floor, leaving a hole in the center of the room. However, he stopped moving. This worried everyone in attendance. Hibari gulped as Cheryl tried to break from her mother's grasp, but she held her daughter close to her.
Mary was worried for his well being. As a doctor, she did not want her patients to harm themselves. Even if it was true, even if he was the infamous Monkey D. Luffy, she was a doctor first. However, not even she moved to see if he was okay. She was in a whirlwind of emotions and all she could do was protect her daughter in case of any danger he might pose.
The room became deathly silent. No one spoke for several minutes as they waited for any movement from the long black haired man. It was Koby who finally spoke a word. "Umm...are you okay?"
A twitch came from the man's head and everyone flinched, and stayed alert. They didn't know what he was going to do, so they prepared for all possibilities, including preparing to sedate him.
Then, almost as if it was a speed of light. The man's arms stretched towards Koby's grabbing them by shoulder. Koby's eyes widened. There was only one man capable of this. Then, without warning, the man launched himself at Koby and to the surprise of everyone, the man looked up at the pink haired admiral and with a wide toothy grin yelled out, "KOOOOOOOOOOBBBBBBBBBYYYYYYYYYY!" Koby's eyes widened as the man hugged Koby's head with a wide smile.
Tears welled up and he began crying. He was alive. The man who saved him, told him to follow his dream, the man who gave him the courage to become a strong Marine that helped innocent people. The man he owed his life. He was alive.
"L-LUUUUUUUUUUUFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFYYYYYYYYYYY-SAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNN!"
END