One Piece fic-PoSM, Chapter 14
Title: The Psychology of a Shattered Mind
Chapter Title: Broaching-to
Rating: PG-13/M
Characters: Usopp, Nami, Brook, OCs
Word Count: About 4k
Warnings: Disturbing imagery, implications of non-con/dub-con, and violence. Angsty Usopp and blatant excuse for nakama comfort. This will be intense. Possible spoilers for entire series. AU, jumps off from Usopp being stuck on the Bowin Islands.
Can also be found at FF.net here. If you want to comment it will be much loved, and feel free to do so here or over at FF.Net. I've begun to feel increasingly at home here on LJ. Con Crit loved also.
Chapter links (on LJ): Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 10, Chapter 11, Chapter 12, Chapter 13, Chapter 14, Chapter 15
"Tell me another story."
Think. Nod. It's hot in the tower today, and the sunlight is warmest on his knees. Ideas flit in his mind, and he grabs tight to the first one that seems really innocuous. Can't be giving too much about himself to a Celestial, after all. "I once heard about a man with five arms. He used them to play five different instruments at the same time, and he traveled the world as this incredible one-man band. The best part was that he never had to argue over how to split the pay for a performance. One day, however, he came upon something unexpected-"
Saint Iddis still wants more. Tell me another, comes his demand. The sunlight shining through the windows has shifted, now scattered into colorful rays by the jewels sitting loose on the windowsill. He thinks …
"Hm … the yaka are a very mysterious, but beautiful, creature living way up in the coldest parts of North Blue, and very little was known about them other than that because they were so rarely seen. Not, at least, until a rather brave adventurer got lost on the way back to his home island-"
Another.
"No one could ever expect that a rei-er, a rhino could talk like a human. But that was just what this rhino could do. Now Brutus, he was a particularly nice rhino, despite his name-"
Another.
"Normal octopus are only of much use on a plate, but once I found one that could do much more than that-"
And another …
It gets to the point where Lady Adel finally seems to take note of the frequency of the requests, but she only watches coolly while working with her needle, covering that same robe with more and more complex designs. She tells Usopp evenly that she still expects some housekeeping done, no matter how much entertainment Saint Iddis demands. And to remember that she is listening to every word.
The way she says it, with a oddly placid tone, yet creased brows, he's not sure whether that's a warning or a promise.
Eventually, he finds himself attending Saint Iddis at outings, and at family dinners. The family dinners take place in a room with a table long enough to serve the inhabitants of Syrup Island in their entirety-maybe more. Reminds him of Alabaster, in some ways. A black-suited, sunglass-wearing attendant holds Usopp's chain while Saint Iddis is busy eating. Usopp has gathered that these black-suits are actually compensated workers and manage things for the Celestials like schedules and security.
Can't trust that to slaves, Usopp supposes.
Both Saint Venosa and Saint Gathram are attended by their own slaves. Gathram has a pretty, rather young-looking girl, who keeps his plate stocked with food. Venosa is using a long-limbed male-does he have two elbows on each arm or is it a trick of the light?-as a seat. Usopp finds the glazed look in the man's eye disturbing, so he tries not to look at him. Chilly, he rubs at his upper arms, careful not to jostle the chains too loudly. Wouldn't want to draw attention of course, but he feels slightly more protected with them across his chest, so it's worth the care he has to take.
Eventually he notices that Saint Venosa keeps giving him sideways glances, her perpetual smirk quirking up more whenever she does so. He forces himself to stare at the back of Saint Iddis' chair, which is decorated with such extensive carving that there's not a flat surface to be found on the thing. The complex light and shadow thrown by the woodwork blurs into something incomprehensible under his distracted gaze. It's taking every last stretched nerve he has just to keep from edging away from that woman.
The silence of the room is awkward and foreign to him. Mealtime on the Sunny has always been a noisy affair-one thing that had never changed since he'd joined the crew. No, it had only intensified with each new addition. He liked it like that, in all honesty. The wild conversations they tended to fall into gave him great story ideas, and many of those critical flourishes and embellishes in between.
But at this table here in Mariejois, there is only cloying silence-and for Usopp, that one woman's difficult-to-ignore menace, weighing heavily on top of it. He renews his private promise to himself to keep as far away from her as possible.
Saint Iddis eats slumped against the edge of the table, head propped up with one arm. Usopp can't be sure since he can't see the young Celestial's face, but by the pose he'd peg Saint Iddis as very bored.
It's Saint Gathram who finally breaks the silence as he carves into a herb-coated chicken breast with all the carefully honed elegance of Sanji trying to impress some ladies. Saint Gathram probably isn't even trying to impress anyone, however, Usopp supposes.
"I must tell you, son," Gathram says, "Your mother and I have a small trip planned next week."
Saint Iddis perks up, his head coming up off his hand. "Really? Where? Can I come?"
Saint Gathram quirks a small smile-almost sympathetic. "I'm afraid this will be a just-the-two-of-us sort of trip. The one she's been asking for, to Sals Beach."
"Yes, you would be regretful of that, wouldn't you?" Usopp just barely catches Saint Venosa mutter from behind a goblet of wine. There's a sort of bitter, grudge-tinged note in her sour tone. He tries not to ponder this for too long. Saint Venosa will be gone for a while, that's good-he should not be curious why she's muttering things like that.
"Oh." Saint Iddis rests his head on his hand again.
"Lady Adel continues to look after you well, I trust?" If Saint Gathram and Saint Iddis had noticed Saint Venosa's muttering, they don't comment on it.
Saint Iddis shrugs. "Same as always."
"Very good, very good," Saint Gathram says, taking a spoonful of soup. "You'll have her to retrieve your needs while we are away, and as always, I shall leave a substantial allowance for you."
His cheek is back on hand now. "Great," Saint Iddis says with no enthusiasm.
Nami, Usopp thinks, Would probably freak just to have whatever your allowance is.
Saint Gathram pauses with spoon in air. "I'm sorry, Iddis, but you know what happened to poor Saint Roswald and his family at Sabaody … the late gall of a few filthy pirates makes me loathe to risk your safety any more than necessary. I promised you a trip to the slave market and indeed I kept that, but I made no such guarantees about a beach vacation."
"It truly makes you wonder about what the Marines are doing, to let a situation get so out of hand," says Saint Venosa, again smiling like she's amused.
"It's fine," Saint Iddis says, slowly stirring the vegetables and meat on his plate into one massive, lumpy pile.
Usopp can hear the trying-not-to-care in his tone.
"In any case," Saint Gathram says, dabbing at the corners of his mouth with a napkin, "Is there something you'd like us to bring back?"
Saint Iddis seems to hesitate before speaking. "Well … if you found an interesting piece of driftwood or rock or something on the beach for my collection, I guess."
"Very well." Saint Gathram nods. "Your mother and I shall pick up a nice gemstone, or perhaps a pearl, while we're there."
"I hear their pearls are quite famous," Saint Venosa adds. She turns her arch smile on Saint Iddis. "Don't worry, dear, we'll search all the shops for the most beautiful one we can find."
Saint Iddis slips off his chair, taking the chain from the attendant. "I'm gonna go back to my tower." Usopp sags in relief, and doesn't need to be glared at to follow Saint Iddis out.
"A gemstone or a pearl," Saint Iddis mutters, drawing the two words out mockingly. He sighs. "Like I need any more boring window decorations."
The silence that replaces the sound of tromping and scraping on the deck above makes Usopp pause mid-bite, uneasy. It's the littlest thing, easily nothing, easily just Franky and Brook being finished-Nami's still working on her ham sandwich without apparent alarm-but it could just as easily be … something. He swallows thickly, waiting, his own sandwich drifting down to rest on the plate in his lap.
Nami finally notices his hesitation. "Usopp?"
A muffled hum fills the air, making his clenched teeth vibrate faintly. With a start, he claps his hands over his ears. Pain stabs between his eyes and panic roils his stomach. He knows this sound, and this particular wave of vertigo.
He scrunches his eyes shut, trying to ignore the hum, trying to pretend it isn't there, and colors and images flash behind his eyelids. Dark black and flaxen blonde, night sky above and Kaya laughing at him from her window. Cerulean blue and bright mauve, ocean far below and balloon-like octopus carrying the Merry gently down. Brown, sweat and desperation. Joy. Terror. Determination.
Everything begins to jumble in a rainbow wash.
He pushes to his feet, the plate and sandwich tumbling to the floor. He keeps his hands clamped firmly over his ears, because blocking it out, even only this little bit, is the only way to keep from utterly succumbing. Nami, who hadn't gotten her hands over her ears, seems to be losing a fight not to slump over on the couch. Her eyes wander, oddly unfocused, before settling on him. Her lips move but she can't seem to give voice to words. With every second that ticks by she her eyes look increasingly glazed over.
The humming is still vibrating his teeth and stabbing little invisible knives into his head. He fights against the disorientation and dizziness with every bit of will he has, stumbling in several different directions before his back slams up against a wall. The jolt slows the progression of the haze trying to overtake his mind, and he gasps for air, feeling starved for it.
Fendori.
He becomes acutely aware of a yawning gap, torn ragged at the edges. Let Fendori take him out and he'd wake up remembering absolutely nothing, save that they own you, for the second time. Once a slave, a slave forever. Once nothing, nothing forever. They'd prove that right. They loved to prove it right. He can't lose here.
He remembers her well enough, the Devil Fruit user that could steal and change memory-though he wishes he didn't. He'd been vague when he explained to this crew. It was a way not to think about it so much, and he hadn't thought they'd need to know the details. A lump in his throat gets harder to swallow against. She reminds him of being trapped, of no escape, no hope, the ending of everything that was so important …
He has to stuff a mindless panic back down into an imaginary box somewhere in his chest. Guilt surges quickly after. She shouldn't be here. There's no reason, not unless this is about him-
The Sunny shudders faintly under his feet. He remembers again that Franky and Brook were outside and pauses, waiting a long moment. No further shudders rattle the ship. He can tell that Franky and Brook are tough, but with no warning, again that Devil Fruit user … whatever fight there was, was a losing one.
Suddenly, Luffy's hat resting on the far couch cushion looks incredibly accusing. How can he tell him they've lost Franky and Brook, because of someone coming after him? He can't be entirely sure what Luffy would do with that kind of news. He wants to think Luffy wouldn't come down hard on him, but still-
He shakes himself. He's losing time. Can't afford that. Need to hide, before Fendori gets here and gets him, too. Prioritize, then, he decides, though he has to struggle for it. Worry about what Luffy will think later. He turns and looks about for a hiding place. It needs to be close, and it needs to be good-Pantry? Too easy. Dumbwaiter? I could maybe fit through an opening that big, or … the oven? Not many people would think of hiding in there, so not many people would think of looking there, either. He takes a few steps, then realizes he's about to forget all about Nami. She still isn't moving, her eyes staring dully up at the ceiling.
Dead weight. Leave her. She'll drag you down, and it'll be all over.
He shifts his feet, tension building in his limbs. He starts indecisively toward the dumbwaiter, then the oven. He needs to hide or he won't even save himself. At one last hesitant glance back, his eyes fall on the straw hat.
His chest seizes up and his eyes burn hot. He turns around. With two rushing steps he's back at the couch, grabbing Nami by shoulders and shaking her and silently begging she snaps out of it.
At first, nothing seems to happen, and Nami is as comatose as ever. Then, she huffs faintly. With a languid blink, she lifts a hand and rubs at her face. She pushes herself into a sitting position and looks at him with furrowed brows. He can barely hear her repeat his name questioningly. Her brows furrow more and she puts her hands to her ears. The hum has faded out, but there's no telling when it'll be back.
We have to hide. Quick. He turns to go, grabbing on her wrist and tugging. He hopes his alarm transfers somehow, even if the words don't. He glances at the hat again, then reaches over and slips the strap over his arm. Whatever happens, he has to keep it safe, too. For Luffy.
Nami lets herself be dragged to a standing position but resists being pulled along much farther. "Wait, Usopp, what's-"
He whirls and clamps a hand over her mouth, alarmed. They need to hide and they need to stay quiet.
Nami's waiting, looking at him uncertainly. Okay. Options. He can take the oven and Nami can take the dumbwaiter maybe- The faint click of the handle of the door to the deck turning is followed by the first salvo of cold air, as good as a slap to the face, stunning him with panic. Already finished with them and coming-coming in here.
Shaking off the entanglement of Usopp's grip, Nami's hand snakes down her shirt and draw out a folded blue rod. Snapping it into a long pole, she gives it one aggressive wave through the air, mouthing something. It's warm all around them, almost stuffy, and the cold breeze flowing over them dies. The room around them wavers with the warmth. She leans back as he tries to push them both away from the opening door, but doesn't give a step, instead knocking his hands away and covering his mouth, drawing him closer to her. Only then does she begin to slowly inch toward the galley's countertop, out of the main path through the room.
He stiffens, wide-eyed, as Fendori looks straight at them. It's over. If she's this close, there isn't time to grab a weapon in defense. He scrunches his eyes shut and tries to block out everything. To somehow project you don't see me, I am nothing, I don't exist with his mind. Maybe somehow she won't notice him, but failing that, maybe he'll get lucky and dying won't hurt so much, either. Not if he doesn't exist.
Silence. Stillness. Nami's hand stays over his mouth. The moment becomes incredibly drawn-out, and his sense of horrified anticipation wavers. He cracks open one eye again. Fendori's moved a little farther into the room, her eyes moving right past the both of them. Her stare stops at the fallen sandwiches, then continues on to the door to Chopper's sick bay.
Usopp's still trying to figure out how it was that Fendori had … had … looked right through them. He turns his head a little, enough to catch Nami out of the corner of his eye. A faint but knowing smirk on her lips, Nami jerks her chin in the direction of the door to the deck. Fendori's left it open.
He really can't believe such a perfect exit, yet something about it, the way it looks-
They both freeze when the skeleton ducks through the doorway, but he can see Nami's lips parting, her soft intake of breath foreboding of speech. He claps his hand over her mouth, as she had done only moments before, and hopes she doesn't drop their invisibility. If Fendori's gotten to Brook and Franky, but not injured them… The room around them still seems to shimmer and wiggle. Like heat over desert sand, he thinks, another image trying to impress itself over the scene. He shakes his head, forcing himself to concentrate.
Brook doesn't look at them.
"Ah-I-Fendori-san?" Brook murmurs. Something in his voice sounds heavy. Solemn.
Nami's eyebrows lift, and she looks rapidly between the two. Fendori turns, eyes steady and unafraid. She's not surprised by the skeleton's presence. Her hand lingers on the handle of the door to sick bay. "Yes?" She still doesn't seem to notice them, and Nami doesn't move to do anything else, besides narrow her gaze suspiciously at the exchange. Usopp feels relief. Nami's got a sharp mind, he realizes, one that won't easily be taken in by appearances. They can't afford to reveal themselves until they know exactly what Fendori's done to their crewmates' memories.
Brook takes a few steps forward, listing to one side before correcting and coming to a stop. Usopp swallows, knowing the lingering lack of balance for what it is. He does remember what it felt like at first. Brook seems to shake himself a bit and mutters something incomprehensible before returning his attention to Fendori.
"I apologize-I-I know what Luffy-san said but … it seems so hard to believe. I may have been with this crew the shortest time of all, but even still-" he gestures weakly, the hesitations sounding more confused than distressed, at least at first. "Still, that Usopp and Nami could have-" he seems to debate some before his jaw just shuts with a click. He holds himself more stiffly now than Usopp ever remembers seeing and plucks at the edge of his blue cravat, seeming lost in thought.
Fendori regards Brook for a moment, and then speaks slowly, words deliberate and considered. "Brook … I can't claim to have any experience with having one trusted crewmember turn against me, much less two-" Nami starts under Usopp's hand, but Usopp keeps his eyes and ears on the conversation, hoping to find out exactly what memories she'd changed in Brook and Franky. It wasn't a complete wipe, that much was certain. There hadn't been enough time for that. Fendori's tone is smooth, soft. The kind, Usopp thinks with a shudder, that you might use to lure in nervous animal. "-Yet I saw as you did how furious Luffy was with what happened to your dear doctor. The only thing I can say is that you must accept that while Usopp and Nami once sailed happily alongside you … time and circumstance have brought them to do the unforgivable. Everyone has a price, and Usopp had already once fought against your captain, had he not? I don't envy your situation, but surely you can agree with Luffy's judgment? Such an outrageous act can't possibly be left unpunished."
Brook slumps, growing so quiet Usopp has a hard time hearing him. "If only we could … but … my, you're right, I know. I only wish … well." Brook's shoulders sag. "I suppose I shall … search the men's and woman's quarters." He does better with his balance on his trip back to the door to the deck. Something about him seems grimmer than it did when he'd come in, even with his lack of facial expressions.
"Brook-" Fendori calls back, and Brook pauses, turning slightly. "Hesitation might allow them to repeat what they did to Chopper. As regretful as you may be … try not to give them that chance."
The skeleton doesn't move for a long moment. Finally, with a nearly inaudible sigh, he turns and leaves. Fendori tips her head, eyes narrowed at now-empty doorway. At length, however, she proceeds on into the sick bay.
Nami and Usopp look at each other. Comprehension and a faint alarm now shine in Nami's eyes. Usopp nods at her, flicking his eyes toward the door. Three dangerous enemies. They need to get off this ship. Get help … get Luffy.
They can only hope Fendori didn't already get to everyone else, too.
"Stay close to me or you'll be seen," Nami mutters, and Usopp doesn't question it. Together the two of them move toward the door.
As they approach the door, Usopp again feels that something's off about it all, and a sense of disorientation strikes him with odd familiarity. They're too close to escape now for him to stop and ponder.
They burst into strong sunlight pouring down from a clear sky. A warm, heavy breeze ruffles their hair. The deck is devoid of snow. There's a faint but constant roar in the distance, something like rushing water.
His knees start knocking as his mind connects this sudden weather change with Fendori's presence, and he wishes he could sink through the deck, sink to the bottom of the ocean, sink and curl up somewhere he can never be found.
Winter is gone, and in its place is a summer day, on a summer's land.
They're doomed.
Continued in Chapter 15: Full and By