Chapter Text
Three days had passed since everyone was separated, three days since Chopper was ripped away from those he called family. Chopper stared at the newspaper. Luffy had fought so hard to save his brother and lost. Hot tears soaked his fur. He needed to be the best Doctor there was, the best. He had to stop playing with the island folk and study medicine, learn new remedies, and cure more ailments; that way, Luffy never lost another person again.
As these worries passed through Chopper's mind as he looked down from the big tree. The people here were good at medicine, but would that be enough? Sighing, Chopper started the climb down, hoping that what he learned here would be sufficient. He missed his friends dearly; he wanted to keep them all healthy. These thoughts looped in his head at each step. At the halfway mark of the tree, a dark hole was spotted, and, climbing over to investigate, he saw it was covered by vines. Pulling out a small knife, the raindeer hacked away at them and crawled in. The small opening in the tree revealed a cavity, and in the center was a broken ponoglyph, with the insides spilling out pulsing fleshy vines. Chopper let out a scream so loud at the sight that he went lightheaded.
Bracing himself against the wall, he took a few deep breaths. He was a doctor! He’s seen people's insides! He can handle a piece of stone that has fleshy insides! But why it had innerd was what perplexed him. Taking a few cautious steps forward, he jabbed the stone with a stick. Immediately, the flesh started to writhe as if in pain, and it gripped onto the stick, pulling Chopper into its mound and closing in like an iron madden. It squeezed and tugged at Chopper. Was he going to die? He did not want to die. He needed to get out and be the doctor everyone needed him to be, but he was too weak, and as the ponyglph engulfed him, he passed out. Chopper found himself floating; all around him was the starry night sky, and nothing made sense. Had he died? Was this the afterlife?
“Its not the afterlife, my boy,” the gentle and familiar voice rang in his ears. Chopper looked around, trying to see who it was, eventual callosed hands took hold of him and righted him. Before his eyes was Doctor Hiriluk. “You want to save everyone so no one has to experience the pain of an early loss, yes?” the doctor asked.
“Yes! My friend's brother died… if I were better at medicine and was there… maybe I could have stopped it.” Tears welled up in Chopper's eyes again.
“Hmm, sadly, I dont think it's possible to fix a hole in one's chest, but I can send you somewhere you may be able to learn how to fix the most fatal of injuries. Do you want that?” Hiriluk asked as he petted the reindeer.
“Yes! Anything so I can cure every sickness there is!” Chopper pleaded.
“This may hurt, you may be lonely, you may suffer, are you willing to do that for your friends?”
“How many times do I have to say yes!” Chopper whined.
“Very well, I’ll see you again sometime. Now it's time for you to wake up!” As the doctor finished his command, the world faded back to black before the piercing rays of sunlight forced him to open his eyes. And his dream soon disappeared deep into his mind to be forgotten.
“Where did they come from? Do we know what they want?” a voice said from the distance. Was it in the distance, or was his hearing messed up?
“We already dealt with two troublesome inmates today, and now we have a third?” another voice said
“I dont think that's an inmate.” That voice sounded like Brooks but meaner. Chopper forced himself to open his eyes fully, looking around. He saw four people in prison guard uniforms.
“Oi.” The voice that sounded like Brooks came from the tallest of the group, a fit man with no hair and a scar on his face who was also covered in blood for some reason. His piercing red eyes made Chopper feel guilty and defiant. “Can you talk. I got questions for you.” Chopper tried to speak, but it came out as a groan as his body flared in pain as he remembered that he was crushed by the flesh of the rock.
“I think youve asked enough questions,” the brightly dressed man who reeked of perfume sneered.
“We have an intrutedr and you want me to not ask questions you-” the man was cut off as the fifth person appeared, but Chopper had faded back into his subconscious.