Here is my long OVERDUE chapter! I'm sorry it took so long guys!

I've been swamped at school.

I promise I'll try to update faster. I love you all~!

Every eye in the bar snapped to the small girl in the doorway and fixed there. She was dead and they all knew it. 'Partner'? "You're a fucking bounty hunter?!" There was a loud crash of a chair hitting the wall and shattering in several pieces. Eustass Kidd was ready for blood now and nothing was going to stop him. He'd trusted this little brat and she'd been playing them? "I let you on my crew and you're a fucking bounty hunter?!"

"NO!" The panic in Aki's voice was genuine, and it gave Kidd pause. The Captain had to admit she looked terrified of him and that was very unusual. Aki was scrambling to figure out what to do and how to explain as quickly as possible. There was no way she could survive a fight with her captain long enough to give him a detailed understanding of what had happened between her and the twins. She needed something to hold him off, "I'm not anymore!"

Xavior gave her a disgusted look, one that contorted his handsome features into something ugly. The look chilled her, she knew it too well. It was a look he gave to a mark just before he removed an essential body part...like the head (He was prone to theatricality). Roivax had clearly called him and explained where she'd disappeared to. How the tall man had managed to get here so quickly she'd never know. "You aren't, are you? Well this is a fine way to inform me of that..." His deep growl was coated in sarcasm and disdain.

"Xavior, please...Don't start this again..." There was a low note of pleading behind Aki's annoyance. She hadn't taken her eyes off of Xavior, save once when she'd cast a panicked look to her captain, and he kept his eyes on her. From Killer's perspective they appeared to be animals, waiting for the other to attack. Aki's hands were close to her release on her hammer and Xavior appeared to have the butt of a dagger in the palm of his hand. "You knew I was leaving you...and you knew why."

That was an odd way to put it. Killer looked at his still fuming friend. He heard it too, his shoulders had relaxed and his had was tilted slightly. "Let's let them figure this out, eh Kidd?" His black lips stretched into a hard line but Kidd saw no reason not to listen. Killer watched him shrug and collapse back into his chair looking, as he usually did, like he didn't care about anything. Killer followed suit, but kept a watchful eye on the pair. If that bounty hunter tried to lay even a finger on her, he'd slice him in two.

"Oh did I? Out of the blue one morning you said 'Sorry boys, I'm off!' and we haven't seen you since! Since when was it better to be a filthy scum-sucking pirate than to be a bounty hunter?" Xavior took a glance around and spat out the door in disgust. He noticed every other man in the bar stiffen but made no move to draw his sword. Xavior noticed the small brunette swell up like she usually did when she lost her temper. When this happened she would phisically rip apart the target of her anger, very few things could get this kind of rise out of her. Questioning her honor was the biggest one, others were minor; talking down to her, treating her as inferior because of her gender, among other things. He wondered which nerve he struck.

Killer and Kidd shared a glance, Aki was furious. The small girl was shaking and a low growl was rising from her. They didn't know how strong this guy was and weren't sure if she'd get herself killed by attacking him. Killer tilted his masked head and his captain gave the smallest of nods. "Aki..." His voice was barely above a whisper but all eyes and attention turned from the pair, to him. "Don't let him get to you."

"Yeah, what does this bitch know about being a pirate? Heh." Kidd's booming laugh relaxed his subordinates, if their Captain wasn't worried, they certainly weren't. "I bet he's only a bounty hunter because both Marines and Pirates laughed in his face when he asked to join." Some of the men laughed but most remained silent, watching the blue haired man stiffen. A dark shadow fell over his eyes and his grip on the hilt of his blade tightened. Kidd lifted his chin in a challenge and his black lips spread into a dark grin. He was egging the hunter on. "Something's buggin me though...When the little brat-" Aki flipped him off "-said she left you, that sounds like she left you. Like you weren't good enough to keep her in your bed." His grinned widened as Xavior's body started to shake in rage.

Aki's face turned a light pink and she hid behind her hair in embarrassment. She didn't want to get into this, her previous romantic life was none of her Captain's business. Xavior drew his sword and Killer was instantly up, blades drawn and spinning slowly. Aki threw her arms out defensively in front of Killer, blocking her crewmate from Xavior step forward. "Don't you dare touch him Xavior." Aki had left her body completely exposed and her hands were nowhere near her weapons. Xavior saw all of this and it only made him angrier, she was ready to throw away her life for a man she barely knew?! Defending a murderous pirate who had helped a monster destroy towns with innocent people. It made him sick.

"Don't touch him Aki? I won't need to touch him to kill him..." His snarl chill her to her core but Aki refused to budge. It only served to make him even more angry. He stepped forward and grabbed the front of the small girl's shirt and yanked her up so their faces were level. He extended his sword to keep the pirates who had jumped up at bey. "Take one step and I'll gut her..." Aki's hands wrapped around the large man's wrist, she kept her body limp and made no indication of her fear. For all of her crewmates could see she was taking a nap, hanging from the Bounty Hunter's grip.

"If you kill me, Roivax will never forgive you." Her voice was calm and level

"We'll see about that." Xavior spat and drew back his sword, shot Kidd an evil smile and rammed it through her stomach.

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