Across the Realms (A One Piece Fanfic: Trafalgar Law)

{ CHAPTER 89 }

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The rest of the day went by with a blur. 

The fighters from the colosseum who had fought together with Luffy had decided to form a grand fleet under the Strawhats' flag, and a huge banquet was held.

Later on, the group had went their separate ways, with the Strawhats plus Law and Sora hitching a ride on Bartolomeo's ship, the Going Luffy.

After gushing about their new bounties and talking about their next plans, the pirates had retired from the long day. Bartolomeo had given them the privilege of sleeping in ship's master rooms, but Sora had refused the offer and went to sleep on the couch in the mess hall.

Never had Sora expected that by the next day, her life would take a sharp turn.

•

It was a memory that had been tucked far away in the back of Sora's mind.

They were inside a room. Sitting upright on the small bed was a woman with light hair, the bulging in her stomach indicating that she was carrying another life within. 

And beside her was a little Sora, no more than four years old, listening to the story her mother was narrating to her.

The little brunette frowned as she heard her mom describe the villain. "Maleficient is bad."

Umi moved her gaze from the storybook in her hands and looked at Sora with a soft smile, knowing a different story behind the misunderstood villain.

"She wasn't exactly bad from the start, Sora," Umi told her, caressing her daughter's head. "Her past made her that way."

With curious eyes, Sora looked at her mother. "Really?"

Umi nodded, smiling. "Yes.. people like those are the ones who need saving," she suddenly paused, her smile slowly fading away.

At her mother's sudden change in her look, Sora tilted her head with a light frown. "Mom?"

Blinking, Umi stared at Sora, her eyes showing a different kind of emotion Sora rarely saw -- a look that she only wore whenever they talked about her dad. What baffled the little brunette was that they weren't talking about him at the moment, so why was she wearing such a sad face?

"I'm sorry for getting distracted," Umi softly chuckled with a shaky breath, and Sora wondered what she was thinking that made her mom look like that. "Maleficient.. just reminded me of someone."

With eager attention, Sora sat up straighter. "Who?"

Umi teared her gaze away from her daughter, looking at the window overlooking the city. "..A friend of mine. He used to be my comfort zone."

"Friend?" Sora repeated. Her mother didn't exactly have that many friends in the city, as far as she knew, which had struck her odd. "Where is he now?"

"He's lost."

Lost? Sora's forehead creased as she stared at her mom, who was still looking away. "Lost where?"

Umi finally turned to her, allowing Sora to see the glistening in her mother's eyes as Umi cupped her cheek, rubbing it with her thumb.

"In his past," Umi said. "and I never got to save him."

The scene changed.

Images. 

A cold metal table. Leather restrictions. A syringe.