With different eyes

Goodbye to the past

Sleep slowly releases me. Sounds and smells become clearer and clearer. And with them another thought: Where the hell am I and what happened yesterday? I grumble and rub my eyes with my closed fist. My pad rises and falls at regular intervals and I enjoy the feeling of calm. The chaos of the day will come soon enough, I can be sure of that here, but at least there is no more danger of murder. I slowly open my lead-heavy eyelids, but then quickly hide my face against Ace's chest. My goodness the light is bright! I smack my lips and try to get rid of the taste in my mouth. Who did I actually lick the feet of yesterday? My face contorts in disgust and I really only want one thing: a glass of water! Since I cannot escape the world, I straighten up laboriously on my forearms. The movement causes the hammock to start moving, as if it weren't hard enough to get up. I sit up slowly and carefully. It's a mystery to me how Ace can still go on snoring quietly. I shake my head as I try to carefully get out of the hammock so Ace can continue sleeping. In hindsight, not a good idea. Just as I put one foot out of the mat, I slip away. Reflexively, I hold onto the mat. I load up with a hard jerk on my back that squeezes the air out of my eyes. The mat flips over and Ace lands on the wooden floor with a thud. So much for letting him sleep on.

Snorting, I laugh as I notice that Ace continues to snore. I slowly get up when I see something red lying on the floor next to Ace. Gently, I bend down and pick up said red object. Roger's coat. What's it doing here? Shrugging my shoulders, I spread the coat over Ace, who is lying on the floor. At least he's warm, even though I have the feeling it doesn't bother him much. Quietly I leave the cabin and make my way to the deck. Completely lost in thought, I step onto the deck and squint into the bright sun. The crew is already on deck and long since cast off. How long have I been asleep, please, and why is everyone looking at me gleefully? I wave my hand and simply walk towards the railing, if someone wants something from me he should come to me. I stretch my face towards the sun with pleasure and close my eyes. At least until a shadow lays over me. Sighing, I open my eyes again and see Rayleigh looking at me with a serious expression. I suspect nothing good! Do I still have the chance to return to the hammock? "Training!" is all he says and turns around. Is he related to Marco or what's up with that. I'll have to ask the birdie when I get a chance and preferably when there's a wall between us. Gloating, I smile at Rayleigh at the thought, which leads him to ask, "Is there a reason you're smiling like that?" I shake my head with a smile and say, " Kinship!" He looks at me critically over his shoulder before walking to an empty spot on the deck. I wonder if I can manage to hide somewhere before Rayleigh notices, but then I remember that I really wanted to work out. But does it have to be Rayleigh? Couldn't it be Ace or Roger, or even better Buggy? I would be fine with Buggy!

Since Rayleigh has me sharply in the eye, I move at an incredible pace to him. What in principle means that a snail would have overtaken me and that with distance. Rayleigh just observes my phenomenal evasive tactics with a raised eyebrow and then says sarcastically, " Even here?!" I smile brightly and reply, "Mentally I'm still back there can you wait a moment!" With that I point to the spot I was just standing on. Rayleigh unceremoniously headbutts me and then asks, "What can you do?" I tilt my head thinking, what can I do? I bite my lower lip and think to myself self-reflectively that I can't really do anything that will ensure my survival on the Grandline. I look at Rayleigh, then shrug, "I can halfway subdue Ace!" He pinches the root of his nose and then says, "Admirable but not really helpful, that is running thirty laps around the ship!" I look at him and hope I'm hallucinating. But since he looks expectantly in my direction, I look cautiously behind me, no there stands also nobody. The nut job doesn't really want me to run thirty laps around the ship, does he? I cross my arms in front of my chest and am about to start a discussion about human rights when Ray starts to grin maliciously. My mouth closes and I get scared, what is he up to? This question clears up when he reaches into his coat and pulls out a handful of pebbles. He takes one of them in his right hand and throws it at my head. "Ouch!" I whine and rub my forehead, I'm about to complain when I see that this lousy sack already has the next one in his hand. As fast as I can, I start running. Already after a few minutes I start to puff, at the latest after the second round I wish Rayleigh to Impel Down, but they would hire him smoothly as a guard! Now I know why the crew grinned so gleefully, every time I was about to slow down Rayleigh threw stones at me until I started to speed up again. By now all thinking has stopped and I just try to keep breathing. My muscles are shaking and I have the feeling that they will soon just give way. I have reached my 4th lap and see something on the horizon driving towards us. The distraction was more than convenient for me, so I point out the spot to Rayleigh. He goes to the railing while I slide down the railing, puffing heavily. The world can continue to turn calmly without me, I will not move a millimeter more.