I cleared my throat as I slowly shuffled in front of the body length mirror, "That's rough." I frowned. "That dress is literally eating you alive." Rain spoke up as she fluffed the bottom of the dress. "It looks horrible." Anna spoke up honestly, "It makes you look like you aged over night." "Ah, thank you?" I tilted my head slightly as I thought about her words. It was like a weird backhanded compliment. "Do you guys remember the plan?" Lana asked as she paced around nervously. We had all heard the gunshots and she was clearly worried about her sister. "I am sure it was just warning shots. I have nothing but faith in Alice making it to the Moby." I replied as I shuffled my way to her and placed my hands on het shoulders, giving her a reassuring smile. "And the plan is to make the ceremony last as long as possible until Ace and the others show up to help." "How do you have so much faith in these people?" She asked me, worry deep in her eyes. "Because these people have treated me more like a person than anyone in my life. Even after finding out I was a enemy. They completely looked passed it and continued to allow me to live with them. Treating me like family." I spoke with absolute confidence before there was a knock upon the door, "Lady Akumazoku, are you ready?" The guard opened the door and I turned to him with my head held high. "Yes, I am." With the girls helping me, I made my way out of the room and followed the guard down the long and narrow hallway.
It wasn't as long of a walk as I thought it was going to be and once outside, we headed for the cliff side that jutted out above the ocean. There was this little archway thing that was decorated with white and pink strings. Underneath stood the pastor and on the right side stood the man that had made my life a living hell from the beginning and my grip tightened on my dress as I hiked up towards him. He turned to me with a grin as his eyes traveled all over me, clearly imagining him ripping the dress from my body. "You look absolutely stunning." He spoke as he took my hands in his. I tried not to choke on the words as I gave him my best fake smile, "You look just as wonderful." I glanced over to the pastor, who I recognized as the branding man. "Long time no see." He messed with his collar nervously as the girls fixed my dress behind me. "Wait? Where's the veil?" I asked the girls and they turn to each other acting as shocked as they could. "We must of forgotten it." They bowed to apologize as Akumazoku waved it off. "You don't need it." I huffed and crossed my arms over my chest, "I am not getting married without the veil and my bouquet of flowers." I glared at him before looking off at the sea to show that I was upset. He shooed the girls off to look for my missing items before trying to sweet talk me into looking at him. I refused as I scanned the horizon for any sign of the Moby, praying that Alice had made it to the ship in time. I squinted my eyes as the sun reflected off of the ocean and I put a hand to the side of my head, wincing slightly as a memory resurfaced.

~Flashback~
"Kana! Are you excited!" My friend, Rebecca, ran over towards me. "Excited about what?" I asked as I looked up from my breakfast that I was eating outside a little restaurant. "I heard that you were engaged to...? Ah? Whose this?" She gestured to someone in front of me and I turned to look at the person in front of me. "Oh this is my new friend (___)! He said that he's going to travel the world!" I exclaim with excitement. "Oh, that's cool." She replied in a soft voice before shaking hands with the person in front of me. I tilted my head "Is something wrong?" She leaned down and whispered into my ear, "Pirates are scum."
~end~

I gasp out softly and shake my head as the girls return with the veil and the flowers. "Found them!" The fake cheery tone reminded me that I had to focus or we wouldn't be able to escape. The three walked over and Lana placed the flowers in my hands as Rain and Anna put the veil into my hair and laid it down over the back of my head and shifted it out of the way of my face. I turned to face Akumazoku "Before we continue, I want to ask you a question." He didn't try to hide the fact that he rolled his eyes and seemed very annoyed with me but huffed out, "What?" "What happened to my family?" I asked him, squinting a bit in the lighting, "If I am getting married, shouldn't they be here?" He gave a light chuckle, "Your family sold you off when you were twelve. You don't recall?" A strange glint in his eyes made me tense at his words. "Sold me?" I asked him and he shifted his weight from one leg to the other as he nodded, "Yes, they sold you to me." I frowned at his words, in a way, they sounded like the truth. "How much was I sold for?" "Enough with your stupid questions." He jerked my hands towards him and gestured to the pastor, "Let's get this under way." I stared with confused eyes as the pastor began the ceremony. My parents sold me to this 40 year old asshole? That can't be true? Was I supposed be some kind of payment for something?
"If anyone objects this marriage, speak now or forever hold your peace." The pastor spoke out and looked up from his book, even though there wasn't anyone else at the ceremony. "Okay-" He started when there was a strong tremor through the ground, knocking us over, and Pops' deep voice boomed "I object!" As the Moby Dick sailed into sight of the cliff side. "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!" Akumazoku roared as he stood back to his feet and turned to glare at the Emperor headed straight for the cliff. I jumped to my feet and with help, ripped off the oversized dress to reveal the bandages and shorts outfit I was wearing underneath, "Taking back our lives!" I shout before punching him straight in the nose and racing back towards the manor. "You bitch!" He hollered and I glanced back to see that he was chasing me. You fool. You're following me into a trap. I shoved my way through the doors and raced inside, throwing off the heels so I would be completely silent, and disappeared down the long hallway.

I stood in the giant living room area, staring up at the enormous painting that hung on the wall. "Is that me?" I walked closer to get a better look at the little girl in the painting. She had long ebony hair that flowed down her face and halted at her waist. She had bright pink eyes that sparkled with a life I hadn't seen before. She was wearing a little uniform that made her look like some kind of princess. Behind her stood a woman with ebony hair tied up in a bun. Her red eyes matched the dress she was wearing that made her pale skin pop. She was not smiling, and her eyes seemed to cut straight to my soul. Next to her stood a man with curly white hair and the largest grin on his face, his yellow eyes holding the same life of the little girl. He wore a suit that brought everyone's look together as a very dapper family. Underneath the painting was a little plaque that said "The Crane Family?"
"I guess I should have taken that painting down." Akumazoku spoke up as he walked into the room, the sound of a gun cocking made me turn around swiftly to face the balding man. "Oh, what's wrong?" He spoke in a mocking tone, "Can't remember your own family fortune?" He chuckled as he slowly walked towards me, gun still aimed directly at me. "Fortune? I thought you said I was sold off." I asked him and he laughed, "I lied to you Darling. The Crane Family never would have sold their own daughter." He gestured to the painting, "In fact quite the opposite." I frowned at him, gripping the knife that I had strapped to my back, "What do you mean?" I grit my teeth. "Do I really have to spell it out for you?" He asked with an annoyed tone and walked over to the painting before he held out two fingers and pretended to shoot the two adults in the painting.
Suddenly everything clicked into place.
"You murdered them." It felt like all the air had been sucked out of my lungs as he turned to me with his sickening grin, "Bingo." "But-?" "Why?" He interrupted me and then rested the gun on his shoulder as he took a few steps away from the painting. "Because your father and I had been best friends since we were kids. Hell, we were practically brothers." He paused and then glared at the woman in the painting, "Everything would have been fine if it wasn't for her!" He jabbed a finger in her direction. "Stealing from a super rich family was easy until your klutz of a father fell head over heels in love with the daughter of the estate we were stealing from!" I tried to wrap my head around his story as he continued, "We had promised each other that nothing would come between us yet she did. The closer they got together the less and less your father would hang out with me. After they were married and you were a year old. I tried to get him to see that she was changing him and he was forgetting about the other important people in his life. He looked me dead in the eyes and told me 'Do I know you?' He literally forgot that I existed!" He shouted in utter rage, "Your weak willed, spineless father completely forgot about the man that kept him alive through several harsh years!!" "So you killed them and kidnapped me?" I asked him and he jerked his head in my direction, an insane look in his eyes "Exactly! If I killed you, I would have lost the fortune to your mother's sister." I stepped  back a few times to gain distance in between us, "Is that why you tried to marry me?" "To write myself into the money. I was going to kill you not long after but some of the staff overheard the plan and took you to the cliff one rainy night and threw you into the ocean. If you died before I could marry you, the fortune was completely out of my hands. And for years, you were presumed dead and the money sat untouched by anyone. But you made a mistake getting drunk and revealing yourself to my men, who reported back to me. I, then collected my bride, after you foolishly arrived on your old island." He explained as he pointed the gun back at me and I shook slightly. If I get hit this close, that shotgun will kill me. He chuckled, "I don't want to kill you just yet. I still need to be added into the family fortune." I took another few steps back as he swung the butt of the gun into my face and stumbled backwards, grabbing at my bleeding nose as a voice yelled from the top of the stairs and crashed down into Akumazoku. I peered through teary eyes to Izo fighting with him over the shotgun. "Be careful!" The gun fired off into the ceiling before Izo shoved Akumazoku backwards, tripping him into the painting and rushed to me, "Let's go!" "But what about him?" I pointed to the man and Izo shook his head, "Never mind!" Tugging me along and only then did I see the smoke billowing into the rooms. I could only assume that was Ace's doing. "Run!" Izo took off in front of me knocking the guards out of the way as we raced back through the maze like manor, trying to locate the door we had entered in.

"Wait!" I grabbed Izo's clothing before he stopped,"What??" He gave me a slight irritated look as we were finally at the door. "There's something I need to do, I'll be right back!" I turned away from him and raced back into the burning manor. I don't know how, but it was if I could recall living in this place. I couldn't recognize anything buy it seemed like my feet knew exactly where to take me as I ran up the stairs and rushed down another long hallway towards the large master bedroom at the end. There was a loud bang and something pierced through my skin, "Ah!" I stumbled through the doorway and over to the bed. I hissed out in pain before turning to look at the vanity, Would it be there? I pull myself up and limp my way over to the oak vanity. I opened a few drawers, coughing loudly as the smoke was filling the rooms. "Please be in here..." I squinted through the tears in my eyes. I wasn't quite sure what I was searching for until my hands meet with a little jewelry box. "Yes!" I pulled it close to me and I turned to the door to only to see flames licking at the door. "Shit!" I turned and ran to the other side of the giant room, hoping there was some kind of secret escape door. All I can see is fire!