DISCLAIMER: I do not own One Piece, just super rad Ryder.

Chapter 1: Mock Town

She could feel her teeth chattering as she brought her knees to her chest in an attempt to keep warm. A chill ran down her spine as a cool wisp of air passed through the cell causing the small child to curse her captors as she eyed the room wearily. It wasn't like the other holding cells she had been kept in; this one was much darker. It held the stench of death, and blood painted bricks. There was a small window to the outside world in the upper corner of the cell, but she was much too small to be able to see through it. The light from the morning sun usually shone through it giving the small child just a glimmer of hope for escape.

The only other thing to keep her attention was the cell door which consisted of solid metal with no handle on her side and a small slider in which they usually dumped her food through. She leaned her head against the wall and stared longingly at the bed across from her. They chained her up on the other side of the cell to prevent her from getting proper sleep. It was just one of the tiny ways they liked to torture her, and it worked. Days of sitting against the cold wall made her back ache, and her limbs sore from lack of movement.

A low grumble erupted from her stomach, but she knew she had long to go before anyone would come back to feed her again. After all, the Marines had already been so generous to give her a nutritious meal of stale bread and water.

The chains around her wrist clattered as she struggled to move away from the wall to no avail. She growled and pulled harder at the chains with the little energy she had. A frustrated cry fell from the child's lips. Despite how strong she was trying to be she was scared, exhausted, and hungry. The more optimistic part of her brain told her that the crew would be here shortly to save her but in the darker part of her heart; she knew that was a fleeting hope, they weren't coming for her. She was just a kid, a disposable pawn at best.

She shivered once more and breathed into her pale hands. "Stupid fucking Marines." The young child whispered into her palms, the warmth from her breath creating a satisfying feeling on her skin. The sensation came and went causing her to look down at her chain clad wrists. Water droplets formed on the tips of her fingers before sliding down the length of each digit and transforming flesh into iridescent water. It should have terrified her, but the child had seen too much in her life not to be curious. Feeling brave she wiggled her fingers only to realize she had control over the water. A small smile formed on her lips as the warm water spread its way up her arms. What used to be a bundle of skin and nerves had now turned into soft blue waves that lulled its way up and down the stretch of the girl's arms.

Amusement lit in her eyes as, she conjured up possibilities of escape. She wasn't sure what the Marines hoped to gain by injecting her with that strange blue liquid but with her powers developing, she was going to show them just how she got her reputation.

The glimmer of hope that almost died returned to her eyes as an idea passed through her mind. Slowly, she pulled her watery limbs through the restraints causing the metal to create a deafening smack as it hit the dirty ground. The child didn't have the chance to smile at her small victory before the cell door opened, white light flooding the darkened cell and obstructing her view of the visitor.

She gasped and backed away, almost tripping over the wrist restraints as she went. The man chuckled darkly as he noted the chains on the floor before looking at her watery limbs. He made a move to come closer but it only alarmed the child more. She was fond of her new abilities but had no clue yet on how to use it to her advantage. The man nodded his head in approving manner. "Your powers are developing."

He looked over the blue-haired child for a moment before speaking again. "How are you feeling?"

The little girl narrowed her eyes and spit in his direction to show her response.

"Your powers are going to be much like mine." He spoke once more. "Powerful." He looked down at his own arms as his normally tan skin erupted into waves of hot magma and illuminated the room. The blue-hair child watched in slight amazement at his display of power. It was much like her own, only the opposite element.

"Deadly." He said in a darker voice as he grabbed for the girl's throat. One minute she was on the ground, a safe distance from her red-coated captor, and then she was up against the wall, her hands desperately trying to get him off. When her watery hands came in contact with his magma covered arms, steam shrouded from between them, his once fiery arms had started to cool.

"What's happening?" She shrieked.

"The fruit has increased your defenses, rendering even my magma attacks impervious to you." He said more to himself than he did to the child. The blue-haired girl wriggled in his grasp, her body dangling several feet from the ground as she tried to swing at him. What did they do to her? She was scared; she was so scared, but she couldn't show him. She had to remain tough, that was what Kabuto taught her.

He rubbed his chin with his free hand, his skin slowly turning back to its original shade as he threw the girl across the room. Her body made unpleasant contact with the cell wall, almost knocking her unconscious. He turned and exited the room without another word.

She picked herself up off the ground and backed into the corner, praying that she shadows hid her well. "No, no, no, no, no!" She hissed as the water on her arms crawled down to her fingertips, bringing her pale flesh back to life.

She could hear voices coming from the other side of the door; it sounded like someone barking commands, most likely her captor. The cell door creaked loudly as it opened to reveal a tall, well-built man with white-green hair that she had never seen before. He had a hard look in his eyes but she could see through the façade, he didn't want to be here. "That makes two of us." She mumbled quietly as she hid in the darkness.

The two cigars in his mouth emitted a heavy smoke that assaulted her nostrils, causing her to cough. His attention turned to her, his eyes piercing through her as he examined the blue-haired child. "How old are you?"

She glared at him and gave him the same response she gave the other man, a good spit in his direction. "Old enough to kick your ass."

The man didn't say anything, but he did crack a small smile at her boldness as he continued to smoke his cigars. "That attitude isn't going to get you anywhere kid, I'd wise up."

She said nothing as she crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him. The cell door opened to reveal the red-coated captor once more and a fellow Marine. She glared distastefully at the word 'Justice' etched into his cape. "Captain Smoker, apprehend the child."

She looked from the red-coated man to the man called Smoker. He stepped towards her, but she could see the hint of apprehension in his movements. It didn't take much effort at all for him to grab her and hold her in place. The second officer moved so that he was behind her and yanked roughly on the child's hair to get her attention.

It wasn't worth their satisfaction for her to cry as he began to cut away at her beautiful blue hair. After a few minutes, she sat in what used to be her soft blue locks, the only thing about her that had managed to stay innocent was now gone. She tried to look up to see what they were going to do next but Smoker kept her head down so that she couldn't see their next form of cruelty.

She caught a glimpse of the officer walking by with what looked to be a brand in his hand, and then she started to panic. She tried to struggle, but Smoker kept her still as she could feel someone approaching her from behind. The panic was soon overcome when the feeling of burning flesh consumed her instead. A blood-curdling scream echoed throughout the walls of the cell causing the red-coated man to smile. The skin at the base of her neck made a slight sizzle before the skin attempted to start repairing itself. Smoker dropped her to the floor as the three men moved to exit the cell. "Welcome to your new world, Project One or should I still call you Ryder?" He chuckled as he left her there.

She had been dumb then, to think that she would have escaped just after showing the results that they wanted. She was too young; too naïve to understand what was going on. After all, all she needed to know then was how to be tough, that was what Kabuto taught her. Who was Kabuto? She wasn't entirely sure yet.

"Ryder?"

Half-lidded eyes regarded the figure before her with a slight 'hm' tumbling from her lips.

"The bottle." He jerked his head towards the bottle in her hand that was now decorating the bar in maroon shards. Realization dawned on her as she looked down at her bloody hand with aggravation. "Sorry." She mumbled as Joe handed her a rag to clean the mess.

"You okay?" He asked.

She folded her hands beneath her chin and rested her head atop them while giving him her famous smirk. "Just peachy." He was lucky that she liked him, or else he would be sporting a very unsightly bump on his head for even considering that she wasn't fine. Joe was the only one that knew her secret; that sometimes she would see memories of her missing past. Why she couldn't remember; she didn't know, and it aggravated her. She had no recollection of anything before she ended up in Mock Town. The only thing she had to guide her was the sporadic recollections that seemed to come as they pleased.

"Hey Sarkies!"

Ryder turned on her stool to look at Bellamy who was holding captain Roshio's hand in a vice like grip over the table. She raised an eyebrow at them before looking at the cards on the table and rolling her eyes. She signaled Joe to give her another ale as she decided to watch the soon to be altercation.

"What is it?" Sarkies asked, his head turning slightly to look at his captain.

"This guy was cheating just now; you saw the whole thing didn't you?"

A delightful smirk clawed its way to Sarkie's lips as he turned in his chair to look at the two. "Yeah I did." He nodded as he stood up. "Every deceitful move, he cheated straight through. I think we should teach him a lesson Bellamy, show him what happens when you mess with us."

Roshio glared at Sarkies before looking at the blonde-haired captain again, he leaned in close to try to intimidate the smaller man. "You have no idea who you're dealing with!"

Bellamy let go of Roshio's wrist causing him to fly backwards as he pulled his gun from the waistband of his pants. With a crazed smirk, he pulled the trigger three times and proceeded to kick the taller man through the window. The impact of his body hitting the ground vibrated the building in a way that made the onlookers cringe.

"God damn it Bellamy, you better pay for that!" Joe yelled angrily. "That's the fourth time this month I've had to replace that window!"

Bellamy laughed manically, his tongue hanging out as he looked at the crowd of men who were now cowering. "What can I say; I like it when I can hear their bones crush."

"I still don't understand why you associate with them Ryder. Nothing but trouble they are." Joe grumbled as he cleaned out some empty glasses.

Ryder shrugged her shoulders, another smirk playing at her lips. "Maybe so, but everyone enjoys a little danger."

He gave her a dull look, unamused with her response. "You can't afford anymore danger girl."

Ryder shrugged again, shaking her mug around in the process before taking another gulp. "Yo-ho, yo-ho the assassin's life for me."

Bellamy looked in Ryder's direction, a content smug on his face at the feeling of fear radiating from the fellow men in the bar. However, when he noticed he didn't have her attention his smile died down, and he trudged over to sit next to her.

"That'll show them not to start with us again." Bellamy told her confidently. "His crew has been trying to move onto our territory for weeks now."

They were called the Bellamy pirates. Ryder didn't consider herself a part of their crew, but she spent enough time with them to be considered a member. Loathe as she was to admit it, Bellamy had helped her out a lot when she first arrived in Mock Town so if pretending to be part of his crew somewhat settled the debt she owed to him, then that was fine with her. Besides, having Bellamy's name associated with hers helped in more ways than one, not that she needed the extra protection.

Ryder took another gulp of her ale while leaning one elbow against the counter to look at Bellamy. "So I've heard." The blue-haired girl wasn't as interested in moving up in the food chain as the rest of the crew was.

Bellamy smirked at her lack of interest and took the initiative to move closer to her. Ryder, not one to back down from a challenge leaned in so that their faces were mere inches apart. Joe stood in the corner glaring at the exchange between the two and decided in that moment that personal space was going to be a new rule in the bar.

"You should reconsider my offer Ryder; with you as an official member of our crew, we could be unstoppable." Bellamy told her as he played with a loose strand of her blue hair.

Ryder chuckled lightly. "I told you before that I'm not interested in attachments."

"But with your abilities, we could-"

Immediately, Ryder's defenses were back on full alert. "Could what with my abilities Bellamy? Use me? Like the Marine's tried to?" She snarled. "I think I'll pass."

"Were going back to the hotel Bellamy, this place gets more boring by the second." Lily, the blonde-haired navigator huffed from besides them. She hooked her arm around Sarkies' waist and gave Ryder a disapproving look which in turn made Ryder's glare deepen. Bellamy stood up and followed them to the door before turning to look back at the blue-haired assassin. "You coming?"

Ryder's glare softened a bit as she turned on her stool to face the wall while raising her mug. "I'm going to stay here and enjoy my booze a bit longer."

Bellamy scowled in her direction before storming through the door with the rest of the crew. Getting under people's skin was a gift she acquired not long after befriending Joe; he often told her she had a knack for it.

After serving some men, Joe finally made his way back to where Ryder was sitting. He gave her a soft smile before refilling her mug. "Did I ever tell you that I hate those brats?"

"More than once." Ryder nodded with a smile. "They keep me entertained." She shrugged while taking another sip from her mug. "Besides, you know I need them for information."

"As if." Joe snorted as he proceeded to wipe down the counter. "You could get any information you wanted from this town with a bat of those pretty blues."

Ryder leaned into her palm, giving Joe a playful smirk. "Quit it Joe, you're going to make me blush."

Joe shook his head while muttering 'smart ass' before moving to help another customer. The blue-haired girl laughed as she watched the man who had become somewhat like a father to her serve an unruly pirate who was already drunk out of his brains. Joe was a rather round man, with tanned skin. His black hair was shaved on the top, but long in the back just like a mullet. Ryder had begged him multiple times to just simply let her shave it completely, but he always argued that he liked it. He had a round nose, and a thick mustache that covered most of his mouth when he talked.

He wore a plain white shirt and an orange bandanna on his forehead, complete with black trousers and boots. He had red tattoos that curled like ocean waves around the upper part of both his arms. If you had a quick eye like Ryder, you could also see a date in black etched into the skin on his left wrist.

When she asked him what the date meant, a look of pure sadness washed over his features. Ryder didn't know why but it bothered her at the time to see the usually happy man saddened by a simple question. He proceeded to tell her that it was the date his daughter was born, the happiest day of his life. When she asked him where his daughter was, he then told her that she was killed, along with his wife. Rage filled her upon hearing those words as she desperately wished to find the person who did it and inflict the same pain on them that she could see in Joe's eyes.

Ryder was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't notice Marshall D. Teach sat down a seat away from her or the three arrivals of the Straw Hat crew.

"That really pisses me off." Nami yelled angrily as she downed the rest of her drink before crossing her arms with an annoyed pout.

Joe shrugged. "That's a shame; Mock Town's economy depends on pirates throwing around money for power."

"What so poor pirates aren't allowed here?" She grumbled as she fiddled with the straw in her drink.

"Looks like there's no way of calming you down, here this drink's on the house." He smiled placing the drink in front of her. "Tough guys and criminals are our clientele here so trouble isn't hard to find. You have to play it safe when you can you know?"

Nami grumbled bitterly again and turned in her chair to look at the occupants of the bar. Mostly drunk pirates littered the tables with a few barmaids attached to their side. There were arm wrestling contests going on and men trying to mug each other for the little money they possessed. Nami huffed again and immediately started to wonder why she didn't just stay on the ship to begin with. She could be enjoying the sun's rays while sipping a refreshing glass of tea and being pampered by Sanji, but instead she had to play babysitter to make sure the two bone heads didn't cause any trouble.

She turned around on her chair and let her eyes wander down the bar, her eyes giving Joe a once over before moving to Zoro, who was happily enjoying a bottle of rum. He leaned back on the stool and let the amber-colored liquid glide down his throat, unaware that Nami was nonchalantly watching as a few lone beads of rum slipped passed his lips and slid down his chin before cascading down his tanned neck and slipping behind the fabric of his unbuttoned shirt. Nami felt her cheeks dust red when he turned to see what she was looking at. She quickly avoided his gaze and instead opted to look at Luffy, who was munching on a piece of pie that Joe had given him for free. She silently reminded herself to leave him a nice tip.

Her gaze moved past Luffy to look at the large middle-aged man with thick curly black hair who was sitting next to him. He was currently biting into a piece of pie that Joe had given and the orange-haired navigator couldn't help but notice he was missing several teeth as he chewed. He had a crooked nose that looked like it had been broken several times and never set back into place properly and a small scruffy black beard. His thick hair was pushed back with a black bandana that held the unruly curls in place, and he wore a white open buttoned shirt with the sleeves rolled up and green trousers. The most noticeable thing about him was his height; he was about two times the size of Zoro alone.

Nami's gaze continued onto the final occupant of the bar, Ryder. The navigator wasn't expecting to see the blue-haired girl already looking in her direction, giving her a critical eye as if she dared to give her a bad assessment. Nami felt slightly uncomfortable under the girls stare so she moved closer to Zoro as if he would somehow protect her.

Nami wasn't sure if the others felt it, but the girl had a deadly aura that seemed to surround her. Her eyes were as blue as the ocean but her skin showed she didn't spend much time in the sun as it was a creamy olive color. She had a small nose and full lips that formed into a devious smirk as Nami continued her calculation of her. Her blue hair was long, reaching past her shoulders and ending just a little above her lower back. It fell past her breasts in smooth straight strands as the rest was pushed a little over her shoulder.

She wore a light-blue sleeveless top that emphasized the lean muscles in her arms and black pants that were tucked into boots. The zipper on her top was lowered, showing just a hint of her breasts. Around her waist was a thin buckle that was attached to a gray piece of fabric that clung to the left side of her hip. Nami leaned a tad closer to the bar to get a better look and noticed that the fabric was intended to hide a thigh strap that was concealing several small daggers. She also had two swords attached to the right side of her hip that gleamed evilly as the light reflected off of them.

The last thing Nami noticed was the blue scarf wrapped loosely around the girl's neck; she almost would have missed if it weren't for Ryder playing with the frayed edges of it. After concluding the blue-haired girl, Nami finally looked back up to see that Ryder was still watching her. Feeling unnerved by the girl, the navigator looked away and huffed again. Nami wasn't an idiot; she knew when to back down from a challenge. Joe, having seen the exchange chuckled in amusement causing Ryder to raise her glass with a grin.

"This whole town's a real dump you know?" Nami muttered while taking a sip of her drink.

"Of course it is, any level-headed person could see that, but unfortunately, there aren't many level-headed people here." Joe laughed.

Ryder took another sip of her rum listening carefully to the conversation. She looked over the complaining girl once more before her eyes decided to settle on the green haired swordsman, Roronoa Zoro. He was definitely as handsome as his wanted poster portrayed him as, and he was an exceptionally great swordsman as far as she had heard. What she couldn't understand, however, was why he was currently with pirate, Straw Hat Luffy.

"The wanted posters won't be up for a few days, so I'd suggest skipping town sooner than later." Joe said as he handed Zoro another bottle.

"A few days?" Nami said looking nervously down at her log pose. "That doesn't give us much time."

"Care for another drink Ryder?" Joe called.

"Why not." Ryder smiled as Joe slid her a bottle down the bar. Nami glared in her direction while Zoro looked curiously, his interest peaked especially when he saw the swords. Ryder smirked when she noticed him looking and playfully blew a kiss at him. Zoro raised an eyebrow at the odd swordswoman but decided not to question it as he turned to look at Nami, who was tugging on his arm.

"HEY BARKEEP!" Luffy and Teach yelled together.

Joe raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"THIS PIE TASTES HORRIBLE." yelled Luffy.

"THIS PIE TASTES FRICKIN DELICIOUS." Teach shouted.

The two glared at each before both taking sips of their drinks. Together they slammed their drinks down in unison and looked at Joe.

"THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST DRINKS I'VE EVER TASTED!" Luffy howled.

"THIS IS ONE OF THE WORST DRINKS I'VE EVER TASTED!" Bellowed Teach.

They both turned to glare at each other again, this time Luffy stood on his bar stool to appear intimidating to the bigger man. "Oi kid, I think there's something wrong with your taste buds." Teach growled as he looked down at the younger boy.

"I think there's something wrong with your big fat head." Luffy said as he cocked his head to the side.

Joe leaned on the counter and watched in enjoyment as the pair continued to glare at each other. "I don't make the food here so I don't really care if you like them or not."

Ryder smiled sarcastically as she raised her glass. "You tell em' Joe!"

"Hey Joe, can I have fifty steaks to go!" Luffy grinned from his stool.

Teach smiled devilishly at the younger man before jerking his thumb over his shoulder. "And I'll take fifty-one of your delicious cherry pies to go."

"Wait fifty-two steaks!"

"Make that fifty-three pies!"

"Fifty-four steaks!"

"Sixty pies!"

"I'm going to kick your ass!" Luffy yelled as he rolled up his imaginary sleeves.

"Do you guys have any idea what you're even fighting about?" Zoro exclaimed.

"Luffy!" Nami cried. "I said no fighting! Besides we don't have enough money to buy all that food now stop."

Teach smirked as the orange-haired girl continued to yell, and Luffy continued to deliberately ignore her. "So are you a pirate?"

"Yeah, that's right." Luffy growled.

"Oh really? How big is your bounty?" The curly- haired man scowled.

"Thirty million." Luffy smirked.

Teach looked shocked for a minute before he busted out laughing. "Thirty million for you!?" He grabbed his stomach as he started to feel a pain forming. Ryder choked on her drink upon hearing the number, who knew the rookie was worth that much.

"Are you calling me a liar you fat hairy ape?"

"ENOUGH!" Zoro yelled as he pushed the two apart.

"Stop this nonsense now; here are your fifty pies. Just get out, you're disturbing my customers." Joe groused as he threw the pies at Teach. The black-haired man took his pies and left without another word. Luffy flared his nostrils and attempted to sit back down in his seat but not before receiving an earful from the angry navigator.

"Pirates." Joe muttered as he went back to cleaning mugs.

The wooden doors to the bar swung open again to reveal a disturbed looking Bellamy. Ryder turned on her stool to look at him, noticing that he almost radiated arrogance but his eyes looked unsettled. She could hear people whispering his name in hushed tones which she knew only boosted his already high ego greater.

"Back so soon?" Ryder asked.

He glanced at Ryder letting her know she was acknowledged but ultimately ignored. "I'm looking for a pirate with a straw hat."

Luffy turned to look at the blonde-haired man in the pink shirt. Bellamy laughed manically causing everyone's nerves to fray as he stepped forward. "So, you must be Straw Hat Luffy with the thirty million bounty." He smirked at the runt.

"Who's this guy?" Luffy asked looking at Zoro.

The swordsman looked at Bellamy and then to Luffy. "I don't know but it looks like he has a bone to pick with you."

"It's that Bellamy guy who rented out the hotel we were at." Nami whispered.

Bellamy walked towards the bar, sure to scare some of the men with a look as he passed by. Ryder never really understood why everyone was so frightened by him. His bounty was high sure but what most people didn't know was that Bellamy wasn't that strong. Multiple times during training Ryder easily took him down. He relied too much on his devil fruit powers; without them, he was no real threat.

Bellamy gave Joe a smug look as he sat down at the bar. "Get me a drink from the top shelf and the kid whatever he wants." Joe eyed Bellamy unenthusiastically before muttering a response and getting the drinks. He just knew this wasn't going to end well and that he'd have to clean the bar up later after it was over.

"Ryder, would you like a glass?" Bellamy asked.

Ryder shook her head, her body on alert as she prepared for any sudden movements. "I've had enough for the day."

Bellamy nodded as the rest of the crew emerged from the doorway complaining about the stench and the people in it. Ryder rolled her eyes as Sarkies pushed a man off his seat and decided to use him as a foot rest. "That would have been a lot easier had you just offered it to me."

"This place smells like vomit." Lily huffed as she took her seat on Sarkie's lap.

The people in the bar began to murmur among themselves, and some even decided to run out making Ryder groan in annoyance. "Really people, he's nothing to be afraid of! He's just a bitch with a big knife."

Sarkie's jaw dropped, "Bitch?!"

Ryder gave him an unimpressed look. "You wear purple sunglasses."

"It's Doskoi Panda." Sarkies huffed, "Not that I expect a street rat like you to understand."

Ryder growled deep in her throat to prevent herself from saying anything more.

Joe returned with the ordered drinks and placed them in front of Bellamy and Luffy. He gave Ryder a look before walking into the back and preparing his gun. Luffy smiled at the blonde man and picked up the drink, bringing it to his lips. "Thanks for the drink!"

Before the liquid could even go down Luffy's throat, Bellamy grabbed him by the head and smashed him through the counter. The crew laughed haughtily aside from Ryder, who was currently blocking Zoro's sword from Bellamy with her own. She unsheathed the blue and silver blade without even putting down her rum. She smirked at the swordsman and took a sip from the mug to aggravate him more.

"What do you think you're doing?" He growled.

"I could be asking you the same thing Roronoa Zoro. What's a pirate hunter doing with pirates?" Ryder asked.

"Zoro stop! We still need more information!" Nami urged as she grabbed his shoulder which he in turn shrugged off.

"Shut up." He growled. "If they want a fight I'll give it to them." He gave Ryder a once over which made her grin wider. "Gender means nothing to me."

"Well I personally prefer men. But hey, whatever gets you going."

Zoro's face turned red with mortification as he pressed his swords harder against hers in a move to regain his dominance. Ryder couldn't help the snicker that passed her lips at seeing such a feared swordsman reduced to a blush, he just looked too adorable. Bellamy glared at the man receiving attention from his crew member, so he moved his arms to separate the two sword carriers. The blonde-haired captain looked over Zoro once more before returning his evil eye to Luffy. "So that's your only back up?"

Luffy slowly stood up, fixing his straw hat back to its original position and wiping his face. "Are you ready to take me or not."

The bar erupted into a chorus of whispers as they questioned on whether or not the kid actually challenged Bellamy. "He'll be killed," was a mutual murmur that spread quickly throughout the bar as several men started to bet on Bellamy as the obvious winner.

The idiocy within the bar was starting to agitate Ryder's nerves. Everyone knew the Marines didn't just fork out that big of a bounty just because. The kid may have not looked it, but clearly, he had done something big to garner the world government's attention. The arrogance among the Bellamy pirates was too exasperating for the assassin to deal with sometimes. Still, she couldn't help but remain indifferent towards Straw Hat. He just seemed too cheerful to be an actual threat.

Nami screamed in frustration as she slammed her fists against the wooden counter. "Mr., please just tell me, do you know anything about Sky Island? That's all we want to know!"

Joe couldn't help but laugh with the rest of the bar causing Nami's face to turn red. Even Ryder couldn't help but laugh at such a foolish question. "Did she just say Sky Island?" Eddy asked looking at Sarkies.

The orange-haired navigator pointed to the log pose that was attached to her thin wrist. "But it says so!"

The bar exploded into another laughing fit, some even going as far to imitate the log pose by standing straight up with their hands pointing to the sky. "There's no such thing as Sky Island you fools." Some pirates laughed.

Bellamy had to sit down because he was laughing too hard. "You got me there kid. An island in the sky? Do you even know about the Knock Up stream?"

No one answered; they all just stared at the blonde-haired man.

"Any ship that gets caught in the stream gets catapulted to the sky and then comes crashing back down. Years ago, a bunch of stupid sailors thought they saw some ships falling from the sky, so they just assumed there must be an island up there. So ignorant." Bellamy explained and then looked over the Straw Hat crew again before standing up. "What a shame, I was going to let you join my crew, but it seems like you're a lost cause. The thing is pirates dreams are over. The fools who dream of these treasures end up chasing these dreams and die in the process. You won't die happy doing what you love; you'll die because you're a fool so when I see people chasing dreams of One Piece, I get disgusted!" Bellamy finished it off by punching Luffy into the ground.

Nami gasped and made a move to help her captain up but was stopped by Zoro, who was waiting patiently for an order. A devoted first-mate, Ryder noted.

"You make real pirates like us look bad." Bellamy sneered pulling Ryder to his side.

The pirates around them started to throw their empty bottles at them in disgust. They shouted words of repulsion as they snickered and cheered on Bellamy. Sarkies laughed girlishly and leaned forward on his chair to see past Lily. "Give them a show captain, tear that runt apart!"

"Luffy forget all that passive crap I was saying earlier, take this jerk out!"

Luffy sat up and put his prized hat back atop his head, shieling his eyes from view as he stood back up. "Zoro, no matter what happens, don't fight back."

The green-haired swordsman nodded as he received a powerful elbow to the side of the head by the Bellamy pirate's muscle, Rivers. Bellamy waved his hand allowing both Hewitt and Ross to take their pick on who they wanted to teach a lesson to first. Chairs were broken over heads and several more parts of Joe's bar were smashed into making the older man groan in displeasure. Even Sarkies had joined in to make a point but Ryder had a feeling he did it to defend his name after the comment she had made about him earlier. He licked the fresh blood from his blade and gave Ryder a smug look, making the blue-haired girl bare her teeth at him in disgust.

The assassin was disappointed that the Straw Hat captain chose not to fight back; she wanted to see just how he got that big bounty on his head, but at the same time she respected his decision to be the bigger person, especially since he was so young.

Nami clutched Luffy's hat to her chest with wide eyes as she stood staring at her bloodied friends. "Please." She whispered. "Fight back."

"Thirty million beli for a weakling with no pride." Bellamy shook his head and took a sip from his untouched bottle. "You refuse to fight and your head is swimming with day dreams." He started to walk towards Luffy as he spoke with malice. "My work here is done; when I heard there was a crook here with a thirty million bounty I thought I'd see my competition. Needless to say, I'm disappointed." The blonde-haired captain took a huge swig from his bottle and with a devilish smirk spit it in Luffy's face.

The alcohol burned his cuts, but he didn't utter a word. Ryder had to admit; she liked the boy's determination.

"Quick, get them out of my face. They're an eyesore." Bellamy ordered.

Rivers grinned happy to obey as he kneed Zoro in the face, sending the green-haired man flying across the room into some empty tables where bottles proceeded to shatter on him on impact. All violence aside, Ryder couldn't help but stare ravenously at the swordsman whose shirt was clinging to his now alcohol sodden body.

Ross grabbed a fistful of Luffy's hair and smashed his face through a window; jagged pieces of glass punctured the captain's skin leaving blood trailing from the window frame. Nami rushed to his side, placing gentle fingers on his back to make sure he was still breathing.

Joe decided to pull his gun from under the counter and pointed it at Bellamy. "I've had enough of your shit Bellamy, you better pay for all the damage you've done to the bar."

The blonde-haired captain gave Joe an almost bored look for ruining his fun. "Relax old man, I said I would." He wiped his hand across the half broken bar. "A fix up in this dump is well needed."

Sarkies stood up and moved to stand in front of Joe; he acted as though he being taller would daunt the older man. The silver-haired man placed the hilt of his blade on the ground and leaned in close to Joe. "Listen geezer, do you even know how to handle that thing?"

A devilish grin decorated Joe's lips as he nudged the blade with his gun. "Listen son, if you think I'm intimidated by a pompous boy he thinks he knows how to wield a blade, then you've got another thing coming to you."

Ryder didn't even try to stifle the laugh that tumbled from her lips causing Sarkies to scowl. The people around the bar chuckled quietly at Big Knife Sarkies having his ass handed to him by a bartender. Feeling his reputation being endangered, Sarkies made a move to stab Joe with his blade but the bartender's finger was already on the trigger. Ryder moved stealthily from Bellamy's side and deflected the bullet sending it through the already broken window while blocking Sarkie's blade with her sword. The only reason she didn't let the bullet go through Sarkies' skull was because then she'd have to deal with Bellamy.

"Wow Sarkies." Ryder smirked with fake impressiveness. "What's this the third time now I've had to save you?" She chuckled while lowering her sword and leaning close to him. "Be careful, don't want to tarnish that reputation of yours right?"

Sarkies had to fight the urge to teach the little whore a lesson. He looked to his captain who was watching Ryder leave with an approving look. He liked the fire that came to her eyes when she spoke; he liked it a little too much. Sarkies never understood his interest in the blue-haired woman; she got under everyone's skin, including his.

"Oi, girl." Joe called, gaining Nami's attention. "I'd take my wounded and leave if I were you."

Nami nodded, grabbing the collars of the boy's shirts and stalked towards the door.

"If you keep hanging out with those losers you're going to get left behind." Sarkies taunted. "How about I buy you? You can live the high life with royalty like us."

The bar erupted into laughter once more making Nami fluster. "Did you just offer to buy me?"

"Yeah that's right."

Nami laughed bitterly, turning around to look at the Bellamy pirates. "I'm too good for scum like you." She pushed through the door with an irritated pout on her face as she pulled Luffy and Zoro along. Upon seeing the navigator exit the bar; Ryder pushed off the wall. "Hey." She called.

Nami gave the blue-haired girl a hard stare. "What do you want?"

"What are you so angry about? You weren't even touched." Ryder asked in amused tone.

Nami dropped the boys to the ground and threw her hands in the air dramatically. "What am I mad about?!" She shrieked making Ryder regret asking her anything. "I'm mad because we just got made fools of by your crew!"

Ryder raised an eyebrow in confusion, did she really not understand? "Your friends won without even throwing a punch."

"What?"

Luffy and Zoro took the moment to stand up and dust off their clothes. They said nothing as they did so but watched Ryder for any sudden movements. Ryder shook her head. "Not fighting back when you know you're stronger is a big insult to another pirate's pride. They," She motioned her head towards Zoro and Luffy. "Intimidated them without even having to fight back."

"Still doesn't change the fact we were practically laughed out of the bar." Nami growled.

Ryder shook her head in exasperation. "Stupid girl." She snorted.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!"

"Anyway, I'd apologize for what happened in there but I don't actually care." Ryder stated rather nonchalantly. "See ya around." The blue-haired girl tipped her head to the boys before blending into the crowd of drunken pirates and disappearing. Nami scowled in her direction before mumbling something and turning to leave as well. Luffy shrugged his shoulders, a grin returning to his face as he followed after his navigator.

Hope you enjoyed! I'd like to give a super special thanks to my friend Dragongirl180 for letting me bother her with all my stupid ideas and shenanigans for this chapter. And also for becoming my new beta. Thanks girl, you're the best! :)