Raya's P.O.V.

I watch as Luffy is dragged away by the Swordsman, heading for his ship. I smile to myself, dodging another Marine's sword.

Sadly, I've had some practice with this.

At least Luffy's going. I don't want to seem him captured. Though he has to be the biggest moron I've ever met, he's kind and he dreams big. King of the Pirates. Huh. I'm surprised someone like him showed up here. I mean, everyone who comes here knows this place is crawling with Marines. But he didn't. And he still wants to be the Pirate King.

I kinda like this guy.

The fact that he's a rubber man helps a lot too.

"Ah!" I scream, as I'm tackled to the ground by two burly Marines. I struggle to get free, but they're just too heavy. I can't move. Oh well. Luffy's on the ship now with everyone else.

The two Marines who jumped me grab onto my arms and start hauling me back into the village, towards the Marine Headquaters. Ugh, great. Now I get to say hello to Commander Bayer.

Hate. Him.

I catch Luffy's eye just before I disappear into the trees. I smile at him and give him a thumbs up, saying I'll be ok. He stares after me until I can't see him anymore.

"You keep gettin' inta trouble, don't ya, Raya?" the Marine holding my left arm asks. "No," I say sarcastically. "I just love seeing you guys, and I show my love by punching you in the face."

He grumbles something, probably a nasty curse, and jerks my arm painfully.

Jerk.

"You sure know how to treat a lady to a good time, boys!" I say enthusiastically. "Dragging her against her will, great way to pick up chicks. They can't escape! It's just like a fairy tale!"

"You were dropped on the head as a baby, weren't you?" the Marine on my right guesses. I shug as best I can, flashing him a toothy smile. "Dunno. Can't ask my parents cause they're dead and all. Pretty hard to get info about my childhood nowadays."

The Marine blanches, snapping his head forward and avoiding all contact with me. I chuckle evilly, then wince when I'm dragged over a big, sharp rock.

"You did that on purpose, bastard!" I growl. He doesn't respond.

That's pretty much how it goes as they haul me through the village. I make some sarcastic remarks, or complain, and they ignore me. The villagers stare at me as I pass, some of them smiling, others just in total shock, and some of them throwing things at me. A tomato catches me in the face and I sigh. Just what this day needed.

It isn't long until I'm forced into Headquarters and dragged up a flight of metal steps, into an office where I'm dumped unceremoniously onto the ground. The two Marines salute the slender man behind the desk before exiting sharply.

I get to my feet, groaning as I feel the bruise on my back stretch. I dust off my jeans, taking my time as the man grins nastilly at me.

"What's up, Bear?" I ask, holding up my hand in a wave. His grin dissolves into a scowl as he folds his hands together in front of his mouth. "It's Commander Bayer," he growls, while I shrug innocently. "Honest mistake," I say, waving my hand dissmissively. He shakes his head in annoyance.

"Raya, I've been informed that you've been helping pirates," Bayer says, his tone softening deceptively. I know he's just trying to gain my trust, make me admit to something. But I'm going to give him what he wants without prompting; I'd made up my mind to do it on the way here. "That's right," I say casually, smiling at him.

He blinks. Then his scowl returns. "Haven't I told you a thousand times that aiding anyone who partakes in piracy means death by beheading?"

I just keep smiling.

"Why don't you just tell me where these pirates have gone, and I'll send you away with a warning?" he offers. I shake my head sweetly. "Sorry," I say. "But I can't."

"And why is that?"

"Two reasons. One, I don't know where they're going. Two, you're an ass and I wouldn't tell you anything anyway." My cheery smile remains as his scowl deepens.

He rises to his feet, slamming his hands down on the desk. "Dammit Raya!" he exclaims. "Why do you find more loyalty with pirates than with the Marines trying to help you?"

"What have Marines ever done for me?" I spit. "They couldn't even get the pirate who killed my parents!"

Bayer glowers at me and I hold in my urge to snarl some ridiculously off-limits curse words at him. Then he sighs and drops back into his high-backed chair, gold tassels on his shoulders swinging wildly.

"I know you're still angry about that," he says, calmer than before. "But shouldn't that make you hate pirates? Shouldn't you be like all the other villagers, who fear and loathe anyone who sails under a Jolly Roger?"

"Maybe I should be," I say lowly. "But it's not who I am, not who my parents were. They didn't hate pirates, even when one slit their throats. So I'm not going to hate them either!"

"...You're don't hate them, because your parents didn't?"

I nod, glaring into his dark eyes. "My mom and dad always wanted to sail the ocean. It's part of the reason they fell in love. They loved the idea of being pirates, and being free on the open ocean. More free than you'll ever be, Bear."

He growls at me, "Then you're going to die for your foolish beliefs!"

"Fine then," I taunt him. "I'll gladly die for my dreams. And all it will do is put more unnecessary blood on your hands."

He grabs me by the white bandana tied around my neck, pulling my face close to his. "You'll be throwing away everything, Raya," he says lowly. "And you'll be doing it for pirates you owe nothing to. Can you honestly say you're making the right decision?"

I don't hesitate when I say, "With all my heart."

He shoves be back and I topple onto the floor, gritting my teeth to keep from crying out. Commander Bayer uses the Den-Den Mushi on his desk to call for several Marines. Apparently they're going to be setting up my execution. How lovely for them.

A moment later, another Marine in a crisp white and blue uniform walks into the office, saluting Bayer. "Take Miss Flynn to one of the prepared cells to await her final moments," he says darkly. The Marine takes my wrist and hauls me roughly to my feet. He wrenches both hands behind my back and ties them together. He shoves me forward and out the door, down several flights of stairs and into a long corridor filled with cells upon cells. Some of them are occupied, and a few sick freaks whistle at me as I go by. I glare at the floor, my face red with anger.

Bayer.

I've never liked him before. When my parents were killed by that pirate eight years ago, he barely lifted a finger to go after him. He didn't care that I was left alone, that the man who killed my only family got away. He only cared that he was called a hero for "driving away the vicious pirate." In reality, the pirate took what he wanted, murdered a few people, and left.

He wasn't forced in the slightly.

I'd kill Bayer if I thought I could get away with it. But then I'd have every Marine in Maya after me. It's not worth it. Let his own foolishness and greedy nature kill him. I have no doubt it eventually will.

The Marine shoves me roughly into a free cell and I scrape my face on the dirty floor. I can hear him walking away, twirling the keys around his finger, humming a tune I vaguely recognize. Like he didn't just throw a sixteen-year-old girl in a jail cell.

Are there any good Marines left?

Zoro's P.O.V.

"That's it," Luffy decides, turning to face us. "We're getting Raya back."

"WHAAAAATTTT?"

It's weird how similar Usopp and Nami can sound sometimes. I wonder who that's insulting: Usopp or Nami.

"Raya saved us," our captain says, "we're saving her."

"I'm game," I say, pushing off the wall and walking towards Luffy. He smiles at me, then frowns at the others, crossing his arms. "What kind of friends are you?" he asks. Nami glares at him. "We don't even know her though," she insists.

"She didn't know us," I point out. "And yet she risked her own safety for ours."

Usopp only gapes at us.

He seems to be having trouble breathing.

"But she was taken by the Marines!" Nami says, waving her arms frantically. "We're pirates! We don't willingly walk into a Marine Headquarters!"

"I did when I went to get Zoro's swords."

"That's because you're insane! If you want to go and save the girl, fine, but don't involve me!"

"She wanted to save you too, Nami, not just me and Luffy."

She turns away from me, stalking into the cabin and slamming the door behind her. I roll my eyes, looking back at Luffy, who's currently pouting at Usopp.

"Oh no," he says. "You're not getting me with that! I'm not going either! I've got the can't-go-rescue-a-girl-I-don't-know disease!" He coughs unconvincingly a few times, peeking at Luffy over the top of his fist.

"Hey Luffy," I say, gaining his attention. "We don't need them anyway. C'mon, once we reach the other side of the island, I'll help you get her back."

He continues to pout.

"What's wrong now?" I ask, sighing.

"Raya," he says finally. "She wanted to help me because she wanted to future King of the Pirates to escape the Marines."

"Yeah, so?"

"Couldn't you see it?"

"See what?"

"It was breaking her heart not to come with us."

I narrow my eyes at my captain. He's usually not so perceptive. "What do you mean it was breaking her heart?" I ask. He shakes his head. "Not sure," he says, eyes hidden beneath his straw hat as he looks at the deck. "But she definitely wanted to be aboard the Going Merry. She wanted to be a part of this crew, more than anything."

She didn't seem that way to me, but then again, I was still focused on her asking for one of my swords at that point. Give her one of my katanas? No way. But why'd she want it in the first place?

"Luffy, not that I'm complaining, but what is it about her that makes you want her on the crew so badly?" I ask, walking over to the front of the ship and peering down at the waves below. He stretches his arms and slingshots himself onto the masthead, where he looks down at me. He takes off his hat and holds it in front of him, shrugging his shoulders. "She's got her own dream," he says. "Same as the rest of us."

"What makes you say that?"

"Her eyes."

I pause, then ask, "What'd she say her name was? Flynn D. Raya?" Luffy nods. "D. huh? I wonder what that's about."

It doesn't take a long time to reach the other end of the island, and we spot the Headquarters easily. The big blue and white building stands out among the simple houses of the villagers.

Luffy and I jump onto land, leaving the ship to Nami and Usopp. Cowards.

"Zoro," Luffy says, staring up at the Marine building. "See that window there? I'm gonna check it out." I follow his pointing finger to a really big glass window that actually says Commander on it in big letters. "Nice, Luffy," I say sarcastically. "Never would've guessed she was up there."

He grins. "Just wait down here. I'll tell you what's going on."

"Wait, Luffy," I say, catching his arm. "Don't be reckless. If we're doing this, we're doing it together. But don't go and use your arms--"

He stretches his arms out, with me in between them, and grabs onto the metal landing just below the window. Before I can say anything, he rockets towards the window, and I slam face-first into the wall beside the window.

"Dammit Luffy!" I growl in a hushed voice, punching him in the head. Damn his rubber body; can't hurt him unless I use my swords, which I can't do. "What?" he says, rubbing the side of his head with an irritated look on his face.

"I've told you not to do that to me!"

"We're up here aren't we? Now be quiet!"

He presses his face to the window. "I can see her!" he whispers excitedly. I crowd in next to him, slightly more inconspicuous, and spot Raya as well. I can just make out her conversation with a slim man in a Marine Commander jacket.

"Haven't I told you a thousand times that aiding anyone who partakes in piracy means death by beheading?" the man asks.

Raya smiles sweetly at him, saying nothing.

"Why don't you just tell me where these pirates have gone, and I'll send you away with a warning?" the Commander offers her. She shakes her head. "Sorry," she says. "But I can't."

"And why is that?"

"Two reasons," she says. "One, I don't know where they're going. Two, you're an ass and I wouldn't tell you anything anyway."

I smile. This girl definitely has guts, I'll give her that.

The Marine gets to his feet, slamming his hands down on the desk in front of him. "Dammit Raya!" he yells. "Why do you find more loyalty with pirates than with the Marines trying to help you?"

A dark, angry look enters Raya's eyes, hiding pain.

"What have Marines ever done for me?" she spits, broken eyes on the Marine's annoyed ones. "They couldn't even get the pirate who killed my parents!"

Luffy stiffens beside me. "A pirate... killed her parents?" he whispers. I shake my head. It doesn't make sense to me either. Why the hell does she want to be a pirate anyway, if one ruined her life?

The Marine sighs and drops back into his high-backed chair, gold tassels on his shoulders swinging wildly.

"I know you're still angry about that," he says. "But shouldn't that make you hate pirates? Shouldn't you be like all the other villagers, who fear and loathe anyone who sails under a Jolly Roger?"

"Maybe I should be," she says lowly. "But it's not who I am, not who my parents were. They didn't hate pirates, even when one slit their throats. So I'm not going to hate them either!"

"...You're don't hate them, because your parents didn't?"

Raya nods, glaring at the Commander. "My mom and dad always wanted to sail the ocean. It's part of the reason they fell in love. They loved the idea of being pirates, and being free on the open ocean. More free than you'll ever be, Bear."

He growls at Raya, "Then you're going to die for your foolish beliefs!"

"Fine then," she says tauntingly. "I'll gladly die for my dreams. And all it will do is put more unnecessary blood on your hands."

He grabs her by the white bandana tied around her neck, jerking her towards him. "You'll be throwing away everything, Raya," he says lowly. "And you'll be doing it for pirates you owe nothing to. Can you honestly say you're making the right decision?"

To my surprise, she says, without hesitation, "With all my heart."

He shoves her back and she falls onto her ass. The Commander then uses the Den-Den Mushi on his desk to call for Marines.

"They're going to execute her in an hour," I whisper to Luffy, whose eyes widen in panic.

A moment later, another Marine in a crisp white and blue uniform walks into the office, saluting the Commander. "Take Miss Flynn to one of the prepared cells to await her final moments," he says darkly. The Marine yanks Raya to her feet by her wrist, then pulls both arms behind her back, tying her wrists together. Raya is then shoved out of the office, the door slamming shut behind her and the Marine.

Luffy and I back away from the window. His fists are clenched in anger and he glares at the ground, his eyes dark and furious. "There's no way I'm going to let them hurt her!" he declares. And I 100% believe him.

I push him towards an open window, saying, "You're right. We'll get her out of here." He nods as he climbs into the window; I drop down beside him, making sure the window stays propped open.

"They probably took her down towards the cells," I mutter, turning to take in all the directions we can take. "But where are they?"

Raya's P.O.V.

You'd think the fact that you're going to die in an hour would make time go slowly.

You'd be terrifyingly wrong.

The hour totally flies by, and what feels like not even ten minutes later, a different Marine appears outside my cell, unlocking the door and pulling me out. He's younger than the last guy, even younger than me. And yet he too seems to have no problem with what's going on.

The world is really turning into a dismal place. I'm almost glad I'm leaving it.

But I'm not glad. Sure, I'm ok with dying to protect Luffy and the others, but it doesn't mean I'm happy about it. If there had been another way, I would've taken it. But at the time, I didn't see another route.

Really, all I wanted to do was go with them, sail the Grand Line and help Luffy become Pirate King, because even though I've just met him, I already believe in him. But I couldn't do that. Honestly though, if giving up my life means Luffy can make his dream come true, than I can live with that.

Ooh, poor choice of words there.

I'm led outside to a raised platform where two other Marines are already waiting, swords in hand. The young Marine leads me up the steps and makes me kneel between the two executioners.

You know, dying the way Gol D. Roger did isn't a bad way to go.

Luffy's P.O.V.

"AHH!" I exclaim. "She's not here!"

"Calm down, Luffy," Zoro says, pulling me back the way we've come.

It's taken us over an hour to find the jail, and Raya's already gone! "What if we're too late?" I ask. "Aren't you usually the optimistic one?" Zoro grumbles, not answering my question. He pulls me up two flights up stairs and out a door, leading to an open courtyard.

And there, being led up a long flight of stairs by a Marine, is Raya. She stares at the ground as she's led up to the platform and forced to kneel in between two guys with sharp-looking swords. Then she suddenly smirks.

"Is she... smiling?" Zoro asks, frowning up at her. "What kind of person smiles right before they get their head chopped off?" He looks back at me and sighs. "Just the kind of person we need for our crew, right?"

I nod seriously, starting to move towards the platform. "Hurry Zoro!" I order, wanting to reach Raya as soon as possible.

Zoro's P.O.V.

I follow Luffy as he starts for the platform, his eyes never leaving Raya. Luffy's as determined as ever to rescue his friend, even if he only met her an hour and a half ago.

The Marine who brought Raya up to the platform holds up a piece of paper, speaking in a loud, annoying voice. "Flynn D. Raya, for the crime of aiding a group of pirates in their escape from the Marines, you've been sentenced to death by beheading. Do you have anything to say to this accusation?"

Raya rolls her eyes at him, still smirking. "Yeah I do actually," she says. "I'd gladly do it again."

The Marine continues. "Then do you have any last words?"

Raya scrunches her eyes closed, looking in deep in thought. When she opens them again, they're glinting mischievously, and she's smiling. "Sure, why not?" she says, shrugging. She takes a deep breath and says, "YOU DAMN HEARTLESS BASTARDS! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO A TEENAGE GIRL? WHAT"S WRONG WITH YOU? WERE YOU RAISED BY WOLVES? NO THAT"S AN INSULT TO WOLVES, YOU GODDAMN PANSIES!"

The man's eye twitches. "Anything else?"

Oh he really shouldn't have given her the opportunity to speak again.

"Ok, here goes. This is ridiclous, I'm going to haunt all your families, you're sick and twisted sociopaths, death isn't the end, I'm freer than a bird, you're all going to die horrible gruesome deaths, I'm kinda hungry right now, goodbye cruel world, etc., etc., etc." The Marine is about to say something, when Raya's head jerks up and she says, "Oh, I forgot. One last thing. I"LL GET YOU MY PRETTIES!"

I blink at the pink-eyed girl we're trying to save. Somehow she didn't come across as this disfunctional back on the pier. I hope this is just the stress getting to her, because she's starting to freak me out. Luffy seems unaffected, though that really doesn't surprise me.

"...Are you done now?"

Raya smiles up at the Marine. "It's all out of my system," she says sweetly.

"Then kill her."

"LUFFY!" I shout, and every head swings to face me. "Knock out the Marines! I'll get Raya!" He nods and thows back his arm, stretching it a good thirty feet. "Gum-Gum Pistol!" he shouts, rocketing his arm forward. It collides heavily with the wooden platform Raya's currently kneeling on, snapping it clean in half.

"Not what I meant Luffy!" I yell, running faster. Raya can't use her hands to break her fall, and she's too high up to come away without any injuries. Dammit Luffy, couldn't you have just hit the Marines and let me get Raya? Why did you have to knock down the whole platform?!

The Marines, because they were standing, lose their balance first and plummet towards the ground. Raya lets out a small shriek as she slides forward on the groaning platform, as it tips down towards the earth. She closes her eyes as she starts to fall.

"GET HER ZORO!!" Luffy screams. I look back to see Marines have poured out of the base, and are currenly racing towards Luffy. He glances back at Raya one more time before beginning to demolish the Marines with his Gum-Gum Gattling.

Just as Raya is about to hit the ground, I dive forward and grab her, turning at the last second and skidding along the ground on my back.

We come to a stop after a few seconds, and Raya opens her eyes. "You guys shouldn't have come back," she says angrily, glaring up at me. "Shouldn't you be a little more grateful?" I ask, my expression mirroring hers. "We just saved you from being--"

"Swordsman, look out!"

Raya grabs onto me in a death-grip and rolls the both of us a few feet to the left, just as the rest of the platform crashes down, right where we'd been lying. She looks back at the destroyed platform, sighing heavily, before dropping her head onto my chest. "I guess I should say thanks," she mutters after a moment, rolling off me.

"Yeah, well, it was Captain's orders," I say, helping her to her feet. She looks fondly back at Luffy, who's just knocked out the last Marine and is waving at us, his goofy grin wide on his face. "You guys risked getting arrested, for me?" she asks uncertainly, a flicker of a smile on her face.

"Luffy would do anything for his friends," I tell her.

She laughs at that. "I only met him a little more than an hour ago," she says.

I shrug. "Guess that's all the time he needed."

She smiles, her pink eyes lighting up. "Same here."