-4-

╒══════════════════╕• Friends? No. •╘══════════════════╛

═══════

Being tall as a bonzai and as thin as a bamboo stick, training for the last two years was hard for the girl. All those difficult tasks such as push-ups, curl-ups, dash-runs, and sparring took a lot of toll on her small frame, not to mention the diet she was in with only a cup of rice for a day and the rest was water.

She thought she'd die after the first week but thankfully, she somehow managed to survive. After the first twenty-four months of training, her body was starting to grow firm and she wasn't the same kid that was catching her breath while running under a large storm anymore. No, even at the age of nine, her strength can now match with those who're older than her.

That day, it was the fifth assessment program she had joined. It was that time where all of them will go under a course that will see their capability of being a marine. The ones who'll pass will be automatically hired as a lieutenant.

At first, the captain talked to her about it and was advising the kid to stay under training until she turns into a teen. He was explaining that having a position constantly hanging on her shoulder at a young age wasn't advisable and can affect her mental and physical health. He was worried for the girl's well-being and trying his best to help her out; as a captain and as a fatherly figure he started turning to be.

She understood the things her captain had said but she refused to take his advice. Instead, she took it as a challenge, being the stubborn girl she's turning to be, and find the position interesting. She told him she can handle it and will easily cope up with the situation. Seeing how motivated the kid is through her eyes, he reluctantly agreed and didn't said another word.

The girl thought the course will only consist with laps, monkey bars, mud, explosion, and automatic trigger guns making her a bit confident. Having a small frame and thin body made her agile, sneaking from one place to another and dodging was out of the question. She can all do that easily, until she realized what the last part was.

Just in front of the exit gates, there stood her captain, tall and mighty, raising his weapon of choice in her direction, smiling wickedly as he puffs out smoke. The captain never told her that she'll be having a one on one battle with him making the future marine unprepared. Based on the smirk he was giving her, she was sure that he wasn't going to hold back making her sweatdrop.

He was the first one to launch an attack, making the girl's eyes widen in surprise. Smoke was coming out of his arms making her vision blur. Raising her senses, she felt his presence on her back and his weapon close on her shoulder. She dodged as fast as she could, missing the blow by an inch.

The kid heard him huff before a rustling sound came in her ear making her duck. The captain was sneaky making it all too hard to not fight. Pulling out her dagger that became her personal weapon, she followed the whistles of the wind as quiet as she could. When she saw her captain's back facing her, she immediately made an attack, stabbing him.

Both eyes widen, the girl because he turned into smoke and him because she was able to attack him in a mode of surprise. He aware rhat the girl was sneaky but he never expected her to be that quiet.

Having no match with someone who'll turn into smoke the minute you lay your hands on them, she decided to use her ability, too eager to enter the world of marines.

Even though she can't handle the devil fruit that much yet, she stomped her feet focusing her energy on stopping time but before she can even release the gold waves off of her body, the two heard a loud whistle, indicating the assessment has came to it's end.

After exiting side by side with the captain, both of them never said a word to each other. The kid, because she's worried about the results and him curious with her stance before the fight ended. Having her head filled with thoughts, she didn't noticed someone standing in front of her making her fall.

Raising her head, the girl's eyes widened seeing who it was but her orbs widen a double after hearing him speak.

It was the fleet admiral, Sengoku and he asked her to join him on the marineford base.

═══════

Days passed by quick like a flowing river. It's been a month now since Ace had woke up and his physical improvement went drastically high but his mental state was still the same as day one, clueless about his past.

Flare learned a few things about him; mainly how the way he thinks, he blabbers, and acts. At his age, that she think is close to hers, he strangely had this child-like character with a pinch of adulthood. Having him talk to her made her realize how goofy he was but rational at the same time. She was sure that those two characters were adapted given that it was completely mismatched.

In the first week of him staying with the silver heas, she was still checking up on him. Taking mental notes when his temperature's starting to get high, how many minutes it would take before his body give out to exhaustion and how many times he zoned out as he try his best to remember something.

Much to the raven's pleasure, after the second week of his rapid recovery, Flare decided to remove all of his bandages, making it easy for him to move around. At the same time of being released from gauze, he started bouncing up and down acting as if he wasn't almost dead fourteen days ago, asking the woman if he can go out the house and check the island out.

Third week, Flare decided to join Ace on his escapade to find some herbs. A minute hasn't even passed when the two got into different path ways, making the woman wonder alone. The forest was eerily quiet making her senses high, it was unusual given that monstrous animals live there. The stillness of the place only meant that there's a predator roaming around making all the beasts scared.

Not liking the feeling, Flare decided to stop the hunt of spiked leaves and turn back home. She was just a few meters away from the bunkhouse when she felt something was following behind her. The presence was large making it impossible to be Ace, and to make things worse, the aura that was being set off of the particular thing was too strong.

Setting the worn out basket on the ground, she pulled out her dagger and waited patiently on the creature to launch. Feeling it run, she turned her body, ready to attack when suddenly a pair of warm hands gripped her wrist lightly and a low chuckle reached her ears making her freeze.

It was Ace, with a dead boar tied around his back.

Ever since that day, Flare felt off. Not because she was scared, but because it suddenly sinked in her mind that he was a pirate. The superiority that he gave off was clearly felt that even the beasts were afraid to walk on his direction. The man she just unwillingly saved was a criminal and he still is.

It suddenly felt weird to be close to Ace, to talk and act all nice towards him. A part of her was confused with her thoughts, given that her adoptive father and siblings were pirates too but she never felt that way towards them, making her question herself; why now? he wasn't any different from them.

But he is, and deep inside her, Flare knows it.

"I don't know why, but being in the jungle felt so natural for me." Ace snapped the female out of her thoughts when he suddenly spoke, making her jolt a bit.

Seeing Flare jump from his voice made him scrunch his nose but immediately stopped and smiled. It's his fourth week on the island and even though she was trying her best to act normal around him, he noticed the woman's avoidance. He wasn't that naive, he just went with the flow respecting her actions.

"Flare?" He called out, noticing her spacing out again.

Blinking, Flare gave a grunt as a response, eyes never leaving the fried boar on her plate.

"Can you pass me, uh, a glass of water?" He didn't know what to say making him blabber any nonsense he can think of. Not noticing any of his actions, she took a glass and pass it to him. Before her hands can even brush against his, she immediately slammed it down making the two freeze.

"I'm done. Call me after you're finished." With a casual nod, Flare rose from her seat, rushing her way out the house, not even turning her back to look at the confused raven's face.

The cold breeze of the night softly graze her skin, the calm wave of the sea almost touching her feet. Staring at the vast ocean before her, Flare gave a loud sigh before turning her gaze up the sky.

It was a cloudless night, making the moon shine brighter than usual. Together with it dusting the blank canvas were the stars, making the view more than ever breathtaking. Flare started tracing them with her fingers held high, drawing constellations in her mind with a grin.

Creating different signs, she never noticed her thoughts starting to wander to a certain raven head; admiring his bright eyes that shined like the moon and star like freckles dusting his soft cheeks.

All of a sudden, Flare was thinking about Ace and it made her small smile fall.

Placing her arm back down her side, she removed her gaze off the sky and focused her vision on the sea instead. Flare wasn't sure how to feel about it, she had been unconsciously thinking about the man and it wasn't good. He's a pirate and she's a marine, even the thought of her and him being acquainted to one another is shouting negligence of the law.

Feeling a soft tap on her shoulder, her stomach suddenly churned like a mixer. It felt like mosquitoes were flying around inside her while her ears started buzzing. There was only one man that made Flare feel that way and when she turned, she wasn't wrong.

"The dishes are clean, you can stay here all long you want."

Ace was standing behind the silver head, charcoal orbs glistening as he stared at the woman with a soft smile. Blinking, Flare turned her gaze back at the sea, giving him only a grunt as a response. She expected him to leave after telling her the information but when she felt his shoulder grazed her's softly, the mosquitoes inside her went wild, even having the guts to bite her organs.

"So, how are you?" He casually asked, eyes focused on the vast sea just like her.

"We always see each other, I don't get the sense of you asking that question." Flare didn't want to be snappy towards him but she can't be nice either. They weren't friends, they were just stuck together waiting for him to regain his memories.

"Meanie." Flare heard the pout in his voice, making her eyebrows twitch, she wanted to see his reaction but was trying her best not to.

The raven noticed her silence but it didn't fazed him, instead he continued his blabbers, telling the woman how his day went; how he discovered the lair of the beasts and how afraid they looked, how he hunted and killed the wild boar that turned into dinner, how he saw the flower biome near the river and such. He was going on and on until Flare snapped, eyes forming a glare as she turned to him.

"Will you shut up!?" She halfheartedly barked, making him jolt.

"Will you just talk?" The raven retorted, brow rising as he stare back at her.

Ace was well aware of the fact that Flare was not only avoiding him but also trying her best to act mean towards him to stay back and leave you alone. He wasn't sure about the reasons of the woman's actions but it was clear as the cloudless sky that Flare was forcing herself to be that way and she didn't really wanted to do that. Whether she was aware of it or not, the two of them were now friends and her denying it was bothering him thus the reason why he was trying his best for the woman to talk.

"Just leave me alone will you?" Flare sighed, not wanting the exchange to continue anymore. She just wanted him to back off and avoid her. There weren't necessary conversations the two of them need just because they were staying at the same place.

"What's wrong? You're acting different. Did I forgot some task or something?"

She didn't respond, after all there's no need to tell someone something inside her head when they'll leave the island after two months.

Impulse or not, she finally decided to throw the man away out of the island with or without his memories back. The only reason why she was holding back and letting him stay was solely for her late father's will. Now that she made sure that he was alright and living, there was no need to let him stay.

Two months were the longest she can keep him. After that, she'll go back to the marines and continue her life being one.

"Hey," he called out softly, face frowning as his eyes held confusion in them.

"I don't know what I did. Ever since I got up, we were doing fine. It's just you and me here, friends should help one another. So, what's happening? I'll try my best to help you promise."

Listening to him made her throat dry and bitterness was starting to overwhelm her tastebuds. She had no idea why she was feeling that way but hearing the word 'friends' made her ear ring and jaw slack. It was almost the same feeling of someone cursing her without her doing anything and it wasn't pleasant.

Ace was obviously trying his best to get her to talk and trust him but it seemed like he failed seeing how Flare's eyes shake and lips tremble.

"Yeah, it's just you and me in this island and in the near future it's gonna be me all alone. So why bother talking with you when in the end you'll leave?" Flare was overreacting and she was aware. That was the only way she can think of for him to leave her alone. She didn't want him to be close because she didn't like the sensation his making her feel everytime he's near.

"The only reason why you're still here is because of your forgotten memories and once they're all back, you'll immediately leave this place." Flare let out a loud sigh and turned her back to face him, heading at the bunkhouse the two currently share.

"Oh, and for the record we are not friends." Emphasizing the last word with a growl.

She never saw his expression and she was forcing herself not to. Walking away, she wasn't even five steps off the sand when a sudden pain came through her temple, like a bullet piercing her head.

Flare's ears suddenly made ringing sounds and her heartbeat suddenly rise. She can hear someone shouting but it turned incoherent with her state. She tried turning but her legs trembled and her arms turned weak, even her vision started getting blurry.

The rings suddenly stopped and her eyes fell close.

Before her body can even touch the cold sand, she heard someone scream,

"Flare!"

Before passing out.