Lair To Lady

AN: I don't own One Piece at all ;; I've only seen up to... hmm when Sanji helps Jin/Gin guy so some people maybe OOC like.. Sanji but –shurgs- my first OP fanfic! I'm dyslexic so errors are due to more then pure dumbassnessess... 3

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Lair To Lady

Chapter 1: Sickly Sweet

The Devil's fruit, Hell's fruit, Devil's food. No matter what name it goes under, the results are all the same; once the fruit is consumed, it gives the person or beast powers beyond what you or I could imagine. From the power to extend ones own limbs, or to be immune from the slash of the sword, or even to much more unknown and puzzling effects...

Either way. Sea travellers avoid its consumption for their destinies... as pirates would be more of a death wish unless they wanted to take over the job of the anchor.....

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The smell of the sea on the wind was ever present as the Straw Hat pirates' ship bobbed up and down on the green-blue waves. The wind was ever so slight but enough to ease the boat towards the Northeast... toward a small island. Zoro was slumped against the side of the rails, his swords by his sides as he dosed off, into a sleep. Nami sat on a barrel and looked over a small map, a puzzled and confused look etched her face as she looked from the tarnished paper and over the sea.

"Doesn't seem to be marked on here..."

"Hmm?" Luffy blinked and looked up at the girl from under his straw hat and yawned, mouth wide open and rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"That island up ahead.."

The cabin door opened and Usopp, along with Sanji, walked out onto the small balcony. Sanji snorted a little and rest his arm on the white rails. A cigarette was placed between his lips as the small breeze brushed his bangs from his face. He tapped the ash when it grew to long and looked at the girl with a raised eyebrow.

"So? Remember, some of those maps date back along time.."

"What are you getting at?" she asked.

"New islands could have formed during that time..."

"Ah, I see what he's saying. The map's probably out-dated," Usopp added, and waved his hand in a dismissing fashion.

"Well, this will make it more interesting!" Luffy said and stood up with a huge grin and his face as he pointed to the island.

"To adventure!"

"To treasure!" Nami added in.

"To some bloody peace and quite!" Zoro growled, chucking his boot in Luffy's direction; pleased when he got an 'ow!' in return.

Usopp smiled softly and rested his elbows on the rail and his head in the palms of his hands, sighing a little. The light breeze pushed the boat harder and ruffled their hair. Life had been a constant adventure and danger all at once for him. What was next? Another man trapped in a box with an afro? Another insane captain?

The Going Merry hit the shore of the new and uncharted island, after its captain had the same amount of shoes a small shoe store might have owned, hurled at him; and almost all three of the swordman's swords placed through him. Never wake the green haired man up; it normally ended up in missing limbs or being beaten to death by random and nearby objects.

"This place is giving me the creeps," Usopp mumbled, looking around the dark shadowy beach before Sanji pushed him along.

"You think the noise the mast makes at night's creepy. Get over it," Sanji sighed and exhaled smoke.

"Well it is! That...squaking..noise.."

After a few moments of Sanji dragging Usopp by the scruff of his neck into the dark wood, and Zoro taking swings at the overly cheerful Luffy, the group were in the forest. Dark shadows loamed over them. Usopp shook a little, feeling a chill run up his spine when he thought he saw something move.

"We're being followed!" he squeaked and clung to the chef's arm.

"Usopp would you stop trying to molest me?" Sanji rolled his eyes and pulled out another cigarette, needing it to cope with the stress.

"Lovers tiff?" Zoro smirked and let out a small snicker, ignoring the one eyed glare that came from their ship's cook.

"Me and him? Like THAT could ever happen."

Usopp let go of the blonde's arm and fell back as the group walked on. Even if he held no feelings outside of friendship with their chef, that comment still stung a little. Ok, maybe he had a small crush on him at one point, and maybe still did. He knew he wasn't much to look at, but did they have to treat him like he was a six-headed beast? He looked down and saw his nose, it was that wasn't it?

He grumbled and sighed poking it, it was the nose. Shaking his head he walked slowly behind the group able to follow them without looking, since Luffy was in high spirits as always. Usopp really admired that about his captain, he always saw the brighter side of things, like he himself did a lot of the time, but he wasn't brave like the black-haired male.

He heard a rumble and stopped glancing down, realising the sound was coming from him. Well, they hadn't eaten yet today, so it wasn't his fault. Glancing around, the teen saw a small bush, which had an odd, but inviting, looking fruit. Green leaves, and the fruit itself was purple with red tints. He plucked it off the bush and looked over the small twirl like patterns on it.

"Well, if it kills me, it kills me," he shrugged and took a bite.

"Not bad..."

With that Usopp finished the hole thing chucking the stone away into the bush and then ran to catch up with the others. Zoro was now leading and slicing away the tree branches and vines that loomed out in front of them. Nami was shaking a little and cluching Sanji. Something had indeed been following them and had jumped at the girl, tearing at her face with small claws of long nails.

"What happened?" Usopp asked, blinking.

"You were right, as hard as that is for anyone to say," Sanji said.

"I think it's a bad idea to go any further myself," the swordsman said and looked over his shoulder at the boy in the hat.

"Hmm?"

All four jumped and turned around when they heard a small moan of pain, all eyes fixed on Usopp who was hunched over with his hands on his gut, sweating a little. "Ah!" he moaned and twiched a few times.

"Usopp-san?" Nami blinked and pulled away from Sanji, going to the other's aid.

"What's wrong?"

Luffy blinked and moved next to him, putting a hand over the other boy's forehead, feeling it heat up. He wasn't great at knowing what was wrong with a normal human-being, but he knew that wasn't a good sign for one to have. He frowned when Nami shrugged, not knowing what was wrong.

"Did you eat anything that may have caused this?" Zoro asked, putting his word back in its holder, not planning on going into the forest any further then they had.

"Are you saying my cooking may have been the cause?" Sanji raised his voice and glared.

"No, now shut up.. Usopp did you?"

"I..found a..berry or..something on a bush and I ate it.." great move Usopp, your intelligence really amazes us, huh? He thought to himself and mentally kicked himself for being such a dumbass.

Now wasn't the time to degrade himself, things weren't going well. He felt dizzy and the pain increased as if something was being torn inside of him. Another groan as he fell to his knees. What was this? Was it food poisoning from that berry-thing? He glanced up at Zoro, who seemed to be shaking him. A worried looking Nami and Luffy stood on either side of him. His vision started to get fuzzy and his once crystal-clear vision was slipping into blackness. The once loud and worried voices seemed to fall back into muffled scratches of sound.

More On Way

RnR 3