The Secret of Me

What Happens After The Fact...

Weeks moved us further and further away from the encounter of our first night of piracy.

Both Kiti and I were torn up from the battle. After I hit the ocean's surface, according to Kiti anyway, the figure tried to get away, assuming I was dead, but Kiti would not let that surpass. She lunged in her tiger form, ready to maul the figure, but was shot in the shoulder and chest, but in her tiger body, the being missed her heart barely, leaving Kiti stuck as the big kitty for about five days.
Kiti hit the red speckled deck, blacking out almost instantaneously, the figure seemingly disappearing from the boat, how, neither of us have a clue.
I was left sinking like a rock, blackening out mere seconds after merging with the deep.
How I woke up with the rising sun in a puddle of blood and with dampened sea water cloths, I don't know.

I could barely move as I tried to make my way over to the bleeding tiger, tacky half dried blood coating her fur and the floor.
I somehow managed to get us into the safe haven of the kitchen. I locked the heavy door behind me, and then dampened a rag.
Cleaning blood from a tigers thick pelt was quite the process, and when that was done, I still had a long ways to go, and I had to clean up myself as well, but I wasn't in as worse conditions.

Next, was to extract the bullet from not only her, but myself. I steadied the wicked looking knife in cold, blood covered hands.I start at her shoulder, and find it was only about an inch and a half deep inside of her shoulder.
Removing it, so to say, was easy enough.
I studied the odd looking bullet in my hand, rolling it back and forth in the blood, wiping it off with the bloodied rag.

It was a classic bullet, pointy at one end and circular at the other.
But what made this one different was that it had a long 'S' on it, monogrammed in black, contrasting with the silver.
I set it aside, eyebrows furrowed, planning to study it later.
Then I look at the gruesome mark in her chest.
I was slightly afraid I'd hurt her even more if I tried to get it out...

But, I had to get it out so it didn't cause even more issues.
I dug the knife deep into her flesh, Kiti flinching in her unconscious state, until, at the side of my knife, I felt the hard metal of the bullet.
I dug it out, more blood splatter and gore followed.

The same 'S' labeled bullet hit the hardwood with my final push of the knife.
I wrap her with gauze and a thick homemade medicine she picked up for me at Drum Island when I got struck down when I reunited with Ace.
I hugged her, blood dotted the fresh gauze on both of our wounds.
I didn't even try to get the bullet embedded in my gut.
Hopefully it won't do anything horrible to me...
But I'd end up killing myself if I tried to get it out anyway...

I watched the 'S' bullets as I slowly fell asleep, too tired to think, but, I still instinctively knew, those three bullets would be of importance.

I still don't know what's their significance or whose gun they were shot from, but they are currently stored in a small faux jeweled box in my dresser.
I walk to the opposite side of the crows nest, now facing the south.
I inhaled deeply as a breath of breeze blew in my face, lingering in the air was the salty scent of the ocean I could always pick out.
I then jump at the sound of cannon.
The large cannon ball landed in the sea mere feet from the ocean, causing our ship to bob up and down, Kiti running out from the kitchen questioning me on what was going on.

My face goes pale.

The boat was getting closer by the second.
Cannonballs narrowly missing our ship.
Kiti lunges slamming her paw into a cannonball sending it back to where it came from, my eyes wide, shaking with terror.
"DAMN VALDIS!!" Screamed Kiti, hitting another cannonball, causing it to explode a few feet away, "GET ALL SLASHY WITH THE FRIGGIN' METAL THINGY!!"

I couldn't move, much less draw and 'get all slashy with my friggin' metal thingy'.
They'd finally figured it out.
Now they were out to get me.
To find me... and drag me back to-
Unless...
"KITI!" I cry, jumping from the crow's nest to the deck, holding my dresses skirt down with one hand as I fell.
"GET BELOW DECK!" I shriek, shooting down the ladder to the lower decks, grabbing her wrist as I went.

I pull the trap door closed, panting for air, face white as the waves froth.
"What in god's name..." Said Kiti in her 'I'm about loose it with you' voice, "DO YOU THINK YOUR EFFING DOING? THERE GONNA BLOW THE DAMN SHIP TO SHREDS!! AND YOU WANNA SIT DOWN HERE UNTIL THE FIGHT BLOWS OVER???!!!" She bellowed into my face, hands on both of my shoulders, shaking me back and forth.
Then I heard feet hit our deck as the cannonballs silence, and my eyes dart upwards as I whisper, terrified, "There here..."
"WHO?"
And then above us says a voice I know much too well, "COME OUT IN THE NAME OF THE MARINES!!"
I tremble, but faces flash before my eyes.

Brothers...
Crazy Cat-Human First Mates...
Red Headed Saviors...

My sword flickrs in the slivers of sunlights as I draw it, and I glance at Kiti, and nod, solemnly, my face prepared for a battle.
I run up the ladder and slam open the trapdoor, jumping up onto the deck, head lowered, as Kiti gives a little cry of joy jumping up as a gleaming black panther, standing behind me snarling.
My sword was clutched with both hands in front of me tears gleam in my eyes.

"Hello..." I say, using all of my inner force to keep my voice steady and strong. "Garp-san..."