Big Things in Small Sizes (One Piece Fanfiction)

Chapter 14: Time Will Tell

 The floor was numbingly cold. Even so, it was a better option to endure it than to endure what was out there. She pressed her palms harder against her ears. A little smile eased its way on her lips, for she was satisfied with the company of silence.

Thump, thump, thump.

Her eyebrows creased together. She felt the vibration of footsteps in her belly. Uh, oh. Her body tensed as she curled herself further into a ball, squeezing her teal eyes shut. Though the steps felt light and careful, she knew better than to trust it.

The door creaked, the sound still penetrating the barrier that was her hands. Her eyelids shot wide open to see the door doing the same. A pair of bare feet silently stepped into the room. They didn't go far, lingering by the door. The bottom of the door swayed for a few minutes.

She slowly moved her palms away from her ears and soundlessly squished them against the hardwood floor. Heavy, but quiet breathing reached her ears. The door continued to sway. She crawled backwards without noise.

She halted her actions when the feet began to walk toward her. Her heart thrummed in her ears. With a shaky breath, she continued her crawl. The feet were unhurried and cautious, until they suddenly stumbled. She winced, but pressed on without hesitation. Her own feet then touched a wall. An inaudible gasp left her lips.

The feet stopped on the right side of the bed she was under. She curled back into a ball, feeling the underside of the headboard graze her spine.

He knows, he knows, he knows, he−

"Baby? Baby girl? Are you under here?" a sweet voice whispered.

She rose her head. Her mother stared back with the same teal eyes. Without another thought, she speedily crawled out from under the bed to her, grunting and heaving.

Her mother was on her knees. She was pulling for her daughter once she was in reach. As gently as she could, her mother released her from her confines and locked her into a protective embrace. She ran her shaky and scabbed fingers through her daughter's vibrant green hair. She buried her face in it, kissing her baby's head multiple times.

After many minutes, the child lifted her head to look at her mother. Fear rattled her core as she saw her mother's split lip, a black eye she didn't notice before, dried blood around her bruised nose, liquid she couldn't distinguish as tears or tears from swelling falling down the curve of her cheeks, black and blue peppering her arms−

"No, baby, don't look at Mommy," her mother said frantically as she pressed her further into her bosom. "Mommy is fine, sweetie, just don't...don't look at me...please, baby..."

"Mama," she began, but her mother shushed her and continued to stroke her hair...

Hattie groaned, waking to the sound of voices. Her eyes were kept closed. She felt bony fingers threading through her knotted hair.

"Weeeeell, lookie there, hun. This little girly's got a head full!" a sibilant, gravelly voice exclaimed in a way that nearly made Hattie cringe. Whoever this voice belonged to was obviously an older woman. She felt her tug a lock of her hair. "It's such a pretty color, too. Like a lime."

"Shut it! Ye want her tah wake up?" a deeper, gruff male voice scolded the woman.

"Come now, she won't wake for a long while," the woman rubbed two fingers against a sensitive spot on the back of Hattie's head. "You nearly killed her with that blow."