Yes, I know. I have far too many things on my plate to be doing this, but here I am, doing it anyways!

Traveling Soldier

Chapter One

Kidd was bored, just sitting there, waiting for the bus. He was getting strange looks from passersby. But, then again, he always got these strange looks. He was big, muscular, and always had a scowl on his purple-painted lips – rather frightening in other people's eyes. His army uniform probably only made him look even bigger.

Yes, Eustass Kidd had joined the army. What did he have to lose? He had no family, no friends, no lovers – no one would miss him if he died. Then, why not go out with a bang?

After the 82nd person scurried past him, giving him a strange look, Kidd let out a sigh and stood, brushing off his pants. The redhead decided that a cup of coffee would be great. He grabbed his bag and hefted it onto his shoulder.

Rouge eyes scanned the nearby buildings in the small town and spotted a small café – perfect. The pale man made a beeline to the small café, causing people to scatter as he walked. He stepped into the café, and noticed that it was rather pleasant and not all that busy. Kidd walked to a small booth in the corner, next to a window, and sat there. He tossed his duffle bag underneath the table, and sighed softly. He set his elbow on the table, and rested his chin in his palm. The army recruit stared blankly out the window, watching passersby. He watched a few families and couples walk on by, before he turned to stare at the table.

"Excuse me?" A gentle and warm voice asked. Kidd turned his head to the left, where the voice came from, and he felt his breath hitch in his throat.

A rather well-built man was standing next to the table, smiling down at him. His skin was kissed by the sun – just the way Kidd liked it. Long, unruly blonde hair cascaded down his back, and seemed to be held by a ponytail at the base of his neck. Blonde bangs hung in front of half of his face, hiding his eyes and the bridge of his nose. His smile was blindingly beautiful, showing off two straight rows of white teeth. The redhead noticed that the other's teeth had a hint of some fangs – Kidd found that it just fit with this man.

"Yeah?" The pale recruit asked, his voice rather quiet.

The blonde's smile only grew. "Can I get you something?"

"C-coffee?" Kidd asked, cursing himself internally for stuttering.

"Sure thing." The waiter nodded and turned, going towards the kitchen. The redhead watched him go and noticed that the blonde's hair was tied back with a blue ribbon that was tied in a small bow. It made Kidd smile – the bow was cute.

Kidd let his mind wander. He thought of what it would be like to wake up every morning and see that next to him. Rouge eyes blinked him back to reality, just in time to see the blonde set a cup of coffee in front of him, along with a miniature pitcher full of cream.

"Are you okay?" The waiter asked, flashing him another breath-taking smile.

"…Not really," Kidd sighed, looking down at the mug of coffee. "I'm feelin' a little low, if I'm honest."

"I'm off in an hour, if you want to talk. I know the perfect place to go."

The redhead snapped his head up to face the blonde. He nodded shakily and the waiter smiled again, before walking away. Kidd poured quite a bit of cream into his mug, and took a few packets of sugar and dumped them in the steaming coffee. He took a sip, and watched the blonde scurry about, and noticed that no one got the same smile that he gave Kidd. The caffeine relaxed him, and he let his mind wander again. Why did he just agree to that?

An hour later, true to his word, the blonde returned with a smile. "Ready?"

Kidd looked up at the man and nodded. He rose to tower over the other, throwing some money down on the table to pay for his coffee. He grabbed his bag and smiled.

The duo left the small café and the larger followed the blonde as he made his way through the crowds of people, who all moved out of the way as soon as they saw Kidd. The redhead noticed that they were heading into the seashore.

The waves were calm as the sun hung low in the sky, slightly changing the colours from blue to a soft golden-red. The blonde stepped out onto the old pier, his heeled boots thunking nicely against the wood. Kidd followed him, even though he didn't really enjoy the water too much. The waiter kept walking until he reached the very end of the pier, where there was no railing, and sat down, one of his legs dangling off of the edge, while the other was tucked behind his knee. He looked up at the pale man with a smile, and patted the spot next to him. Obediently, the redhead sat down next to him, dangling both of his legs over the edge, his bag hitting the wood behind him with a dull thunk.

"I come down here to think, sometimes," the tanned male explained.

"I can see why," Kidd replied with a nod.

"I'm Killer, by the way," the smaller said, finally introducing himself.

"I was starting to wonder if you even had a name," the army recruit chuckled. The name sounded rather odd, but who was he to judge? His name was Kidd, after all. "I'm Eustass Kidd."

"It's nice to meet you, Kidd."

The duo sat in silence after that, staring out into the ocean's gold-tinted waves as the sun slowly slid downwards in the sky, causing the colours of the sky to change to pinks, reds, blues, purples, and the blackness of night. They must have sat there for at least an hour, before anyone spoke. It was Kidd who decided to break the silence.

"Hey, this is gonna sound weird, but…could I write to you?"

Killer turned to face the army recruit, and smiled – that same dazzling one that he'd given Kidd at the small café – the one the blonde seemed to only give him. "I'd like that. If you want, I could give the other letters your write to your loved ones."

Kidd couldn't help but chuckle. "See, that's why I want to write to you. I got no one else to send a letter to."

A silence stretched between them, but it wasn't exactly uncomfortable. At least, not in Kidd's opinion. Then again, he wasn't one to pick up on things like that. Out of the corner of his eye, the redhead watched Killer as his face was contemplative.

"I'd love to get letters from you," Killer said suddenly. He turned to Kidd and flashed him that smile again.

Before Kidd could open his mouth to say anything else, his watched beeped rather loudly, piercing the silence.

"Shit," the recruit muttered, standing up and fixing his uniform. He picked up his duffle bag and sighed.

"What was that?" the tanned male asked, standing as well.

"My watch. The last bus to the military base is going to be at the bus stop in a few minutes," he explained. Kidd watched as Killer's face fell, his smile missing. The redhead found that he wanted to do anything to get that smile back.

"So…I guess this is goodbye?"

"Nah," Kidd grinned, "This is just a 'see-ya-later', that's all."

Killer looked up at him, and flashed him that dazzling smile once more. He reached into the pocket of his jeans, and pulled out a pen. In a flash, the blonde grabbed a hold of the other's strong hand, flipping it over to reveal a pale palm. With quick strokes that slightly tickled, Killer wrote something on his hand.

"Then, I'll see you later," the smaller nodded.

"Yeah," the army recruit smiled, "I'll see you later."

The duo parted ways, Killer standing on the pier, staring out into the waves, as Kidd jobbed back to the bus stop just in time to see the bus pull up. A few other recruits were standing there as well, chatting quietly. The redhead towered over all of them, causing them to skirt away from him. Kidd didn't mind much. He was too busy reading his hand.

Soldier Killer

308 Sabaody Archipelago

Apartment 3B

South Blue, 02020

A smile stretched across his purple painted lips. He couldn't wait to get his hands on some paper.

This is the first chapter of this little...whatever this is. I know, I have so many different requests to do. I might have to cheat, and smush some of them together, because my brain is getting rather rusty. I am truly sorry for this. I just don't wanna disappoint all of you. I'd feel terrible.

Anywho, the other day, I woke up, singing 'Traveling Soldier' by the Dixie Chicks, and then I started watching the new episodes of OP, and well...this came to be! This is gonna be rather short, and a bit sad, and mushy, and full of feels that may make you wanna hit me. I apologize! I will warn you before hand if there are epic feels that may make you cry or depressed.

I hope that you all enjoy this story, because I'm having quite a bit of fun writing it, although updates might be slow. I got a new book! Don Quixote, translated into English, because I'm lame and can't read Spanish, and it's 940 pages in total. So, when I take a break from reading or working on my other things, or from being lazy and napping, I'll try to write! Please, review and tell me what you've all thought about this - it inspires me a bit more.