Free Heart

Ch 31 - I am Here on Family Business

Emmy smoothed out her apron and looked nervously around her. Busy was the only way to describe Logue Town. The people bustling up and down the streets were engrossed in their day. The noises of many people doing multiple things at once was noisy and turbulent. Emmy didn't even want to think about how and what they were feeling. She was glad she had her headband on. Even if she was still in the middle of her Devil Fruit Power Embargo, she wouldn't take it off anyways.

The navigator had helped them get to this large port town so that the crew could stock up on the necessities they would need before heading into the Grand Line. Of course, once the captain heard that this was where Gold Roger born and died, he was all for this pit stop.

"You really going to be okay, Emmy-chan?" Sanji asked as they walked down the street together. They were the only ones left from the group. Luffy had ran off to find the execution platform. Usopp, Nami, and Zoro went off on their own to buy whatever it was they needed. The cook was more interested in taking the time to browse through the many different food selections of the town and unbeknownst to the first mate, he was also keeping an eye on the variety of females around him. There were just so many and he was getting very excited.

Emmy nodded at the cook and she smiled with more confidence than she felt. "I need to do this on my own. I'll be fine. You can go do your shopping. I'll meet you back on the ship."

Sanji eyed her warily before nodding his head. "Okay. It'll be easier if you just told me where you were going. That way, I can stick around the area in case you-"

"I'll be fine," Emmy said, "This is something I need to do on my own."

"Okay," Sanji sighed, "If you insist."

"I do and don't worry," Emmy replied and she held out her deck of cards for emphasis, "I have this."

Sanji smiled and patted her on the head. "Alright, but remember what Luffy said. Any sign of trouble, you either run back to the ship-"

"Or find you, Zoro, or him. I will," she finished and gave him a small wave before he walked away. She stuck her deck back into her apron pocket and hurried over to the closest townsperson she could find. It happened to be an old woman who was busy sweeping the front of her clothing store.

"Excuse me," Emmy said politely and bowed her head, "Could you please tell me where I can get to the marine base here?"

"O-Of course. It's just a few blocks away but is something wrong? Are you in trouble?"

Emmy shook her head. "I have a family member in the marines. I just want to see if I could make a call to him."

"Oh, you poor dear," the old woman said, "You must miss your family member terribly. Of course. Here let me draw you a map."

Emmy smiled and she tipped the woman a shiny coin once she got the directions. She went straight to the marine base, which was headquartered in a five story building in the middle of a sidestreet. It was painted a pale turquoise with a large white 'MARINE' sign at the front. The windows had white shutters and everything looked pristine. Emmy nodded in approval. The marines here must be very disciplined.

She walked through the opened doors and and nodded to a marine sitting at the front desk. The lobby of the base was just as clean and pristine as the inside with a white stone staircase in the back of the room that led up to the upper offices.

"Good afternoon, sir," she said and bowed her head, "I am requesting permission to contact a naval officer."

"Is it official business?" he asked.

"No. It's personal."

"Then no," he said, "Our communication center is used for official businesses. Not to little girls when they start missing their fathers or brothers."