Hey everyone! This was written for my wonderful amazing sister and best friend. Hope you all enjoy it! (and if you don't, that's okay, it's not for you! Haha)
Joyuex Anniversaire, ma soeur!
"What are you looking at, Erza?" Lucy walked up to the red-headed warrior, who was almost glaring at the almost-empty request board.
"There are a lot less requests lately. And several of the bounties were taken off quite suddenly, at almost the same time."
"Well…we aren't the only guild, right? Maybe another one is just working really hard."
"The S-Class board only has a couple requests, and none of them are bounties." She tapped her chin thoughtfully. "I think we may have a bounty hunter in Magnolia." Lucy looked at her, confused.
"Is that a bad thing?"
"Not necessarily. But it just doesn't sit right with me. Even a team of bounty hunters can't take care of this many people at once. I asked Master to see how the other guilds are faring in this, but he hasn't gotten back to me yet."
"Okay…I'm still not seeing how this is making you antsy, Erza."
"Whoever these people are could be dangerous. These bounties weren't small, especially the S-Class ones, and they all have been taken care of within days of each other. Someone is using very powerful magic almost recklessly. Their show of strength makes me nervous. What's their end game?"
"End game? Erza, don't you think you might be pushing it a little far here? They are just collecting bounties."
"For now. But what will they do when they run out? Will they move on? Or will they use their power for something else. I'm telling you, this doesn't sit right with me."
"Then it sounds like the only way to get you to relax is if we go and ask them personally," Gray walked up, shirtless as usual, hands in his pockets. "I mean, if you're wrong, nothing to it, we just let them do their thing. But if you're right, we could be looking at the start of a turf war at the very least. Honestly, I'd rather be safe than sorry." Erza studied him for a moment, pondering his words, before she nodded.
"I agree. It's best to find out for sure." At that moment an angry ball of fire only to be named Natsu ran up, punching Gray in the face.
"You jerk! I told you, you couldn't tell them! We had a deal, man!" Gray stumbled, wiping his face, before retaliating.
"I don't know what you're talking about, candle man! Tell them what?" They were now face to face, getting ready to trash yet another guild hall.
"Like you don't know! It was supposed to be a surprise, popsicle man!" Erza walked up and hit them both on the heads, knocking them face first into the floor.
"Natsu, if you had misgivings about this as well, then you shouldn't have kept it to yourself. Why would you think that would be a good surprise?"
"Well, duh, because that's the only way to do these things!" Natsu mumbled from his position on the floor. "Everybody knows that."
"What are you talking about? I think the fires you use finally finished roasting what was supposed to be a brain. You don't surprise your guild-mates with a potential invasion!" Gray grumbled from his spot, too sore to move. Natsu jumped up, bleeding nose forgotten.
"Invasion? What are you talking about?" Lucy sighed.
"The bounty hunters that are taking all the bounty requests. We're worried they could be a possible threat to Magnolia, since they're so powerful and no one seems to know who's doing it."
"That is serious! Why aren't we hunting them down?"
"Because," Erza rubbed her temples, seeming to try to calm her temper. "We don't know if they're a threat yet, we don't even know who they are, let alone where they are."
"Natsuuuuuuu!" Happy flew in, tears streaming down his face. "Natsu! This is bad! There are reports from the men on the ports of a pirate ship off the shores of Magnolia! They are too afraid to go out in case they get robbed!" Everyone looked at each other, then Natsu hit his flame fist to his palm.
"Well, sounds as good as any to start our investigation," he grinned. Erza nodded.
"And we get to see if these pirates have any ill intentions towards Magnolia. Alright, then. Let's go." Lucy nodded, brushed her hand against her keys, and they headed out.
"Where did Happy say they were?" Lucy panted, slightly winded as they ran towards the harbor.
"East side, off the coast, hidden beside the Lost Caves," Erza called back to her.
"I don't see why we couldn't just go around the harbor and blow up the ship," Natsu said, clearly bored.
"Because, cinder-brain, you could accidentally hit an innocent. We don't know what their ship looks like!" Gray shouted, easily keeping pace with Erza.
"Oh. Wait, wouldn't they come out to see the hubbub? We just make sure no one is on the boat, then—"
"Natsu, you don't know what kind of people they are. They could just as easily be the type to set the fire, not stop it," Lucy gasped. Natsu grabbed her hand to pull her along. "Why didn't Happy just come with us, again?"
"Uh…cause he had to…uh…he had something he had to take care of. Don't worry, we can handle it." Lucy gave up her response in favor of getting more air into her lungs.
"There it is!" Erza called out, and they stopped to see what they could learn. Lucy leaned on her knees, gasping.
"Why did we have to run?" she asked when her breathing stabilized.
"We needed to get here quickly to ensure the safety of the harbor."
"That, and running is one of the best ways to get places," Natsu called out, practically gushing. Lucy scowled at him before getting up and helping the others. She walked up as Gray finished talking with the harbor master.
"He says they've postponed setting sail for all boats until they are sure what the pirates want, but only for the day. If they are still here tomorrow, they have to go out to refresh their trading stock."
"Then we have a deadline. Did they say if they saw the pirates?"
"One reported a skull and crossbones with a strange hat, but they didn't get any more details as they high-tailed it back to shore."
"Alright, then. Let's start where Happy said they were and go from there." They walked to the lagoon that housed the Lost Caves. It took a while; the only way to the lagoon from land was through a cliffside forest. They climbed for a good hour and a half before the trees stopped abruptly. Lucy gasped in surprise as Gray caught her before she fell.
"Easy there, Lucy. Those aren't bubbles down there," Gray said, glancing down the cliff to the water half a mile below. She nodded. The lagoon was up against the cliff they were on, which incased it in a half circle, and rocks coming from the shore stretched across most of the opening. There was one part that was deeper, allowing smaller vessels into the lagoon, but since it was a dead end, no ships ever went in. In fact, most probably didn't even know they could, simply disregarding it when they looked at the map. So it was surprising to see a smaller ship with a goat's head sitting in the fairly shallow waters.
"Is that it?" Natsu asked, squinting as the sun reflected beautifully off the water.
"I'd say so," Lucy said, pointing to the main mast. "There's the Jolly Roger."
"The what?" Natsu complained.
"The Jolly Roger. The skull and crossbones flag. It's the universal symbol for pirates, though some will add different touches to personalize them, so they're easier to identify." Erza pointed to the flag as well. "There's the strange hat the fishermen reported. These must be them."
"Great, we found them. Now what? They are in the middle of the lagoon." Erza studied the area, trying to see if there was a way to reach the ship from the land while Gray looked to the water and down the cliffside for ways to get down there. "Maybe we could swim ac—" Lucy was interrupted when she suddenly felt airborne.
"This is nothing!" Natsu laughed as he shot flames from his feet, carrying Lucy, Erza, and Gray with him. They screamed as they started to plummet due to the weight, but Natsu put a stronger burst of flame on and they rocketed the remaining distance to the ship, where they landed painfully on the deck.
"Ussop! Are they back yet?" Nami called up to the man in the bird's nest.
"I'm looking, Nami," the long-nosed man said. "But you know when they get like this there's no real way to stop them."
"I know!" she called back. "But I told those idiots that I wanted to explore those caves today. I got ahold of a map for them, and I want to see how far we can get today." Ussop climbed down the mast, rolling his eyes. There was absolutely no stopping her ever since she heard that these caves held some ancient treasure. Even Chopper learned not to mess with her ever since Alabasta. The little reindeer had moved some of the gold that was given to them to make room for some of his medicines and Nami scared the poor guy out of the room. It took three days before he went back in there, after Nami had removed the gold.
"Well, Robin said she would be gone all day, so she isn't coming. But the others should be back soon then. Sanji's always been pretty punctual."
"But of course!" a voice called from above. The yellow-haired cook landed lightly on the ship, having just jumped from the stepping stones that peeled off from the shore. He had a slightly large bag over his shoulder, with another bag about the same side in his other hand.
"It's rude to keep a lady waiting." He smiled, before suddenly gushing over Nami, as usual. "Nami-swan! Did you just fall for me? Huh? Did I make your heart swoon?" Nami rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, yeah, Sanji. What's in the bags?" He smiled wider as he opened one of the bags.
"I went and bought some supplies with what I earned earlier. You said we were going into the caves, so I got some lights, rope, glow sticks, pick axes and shovels, and a few sticks of dynamite just in case." Ussop excitedly started sorting through the stuff, organizing a bunch of packs he had gotten ready for the trip earlier.
"Great! These will really come in handy. There's no such thing as too much rope when you go exploring caves." He left to repack the bags.
"And I got some food for the trip as well. I figured it would be good to try a few of this island's delicacies."
"Sounds good, Sanji. Where's the others?"
"The last time I saw the moss head was when we left earlier this morning. But Luffy and Chopper were over on the other side of the outcropping there, playing with some fish. I'll make some lunch, and they'll come running. Robin went on her fact-finding mission." Nami nodded and went back to her map. A little later Ussop joined her so they could strategize.
"We don't have enough shovels or pick axes for everyone, so I put them with Zoro, Sanji, Luffy, and my bag. There's enough rope for everyone, and there was a stick of dynamite for each. They really should only be used for emergencies and just in case situations, and I made some flares earlier. Caves can be dangerous, so I made sure mine and your bags have a knife in them as well. The others should be fine." Nami nodded and made some adjustments on her map as Sanji came out of the kitchen cleaning his hands.
"Here you are, my dear Nami," he said lovingly, placing her plate before her, before turning to the rocks across the water. "Food is ready!" Immediately two figures came running from the rocks and jumped on the ship.
"Thank you, Sanji," she said, finally turning away from her maps as Luffy and Chopper bounded into the kitchen, clamoring for the food. Sanji ran over to make sure they didn't break anything or take too much. Soon they were all on deck, laughing and eating.
"Sanjiiiiiii," Luffy whined when they finished eating. "This isn't a meal. Where's all the meat? I'm huuuuungryyyyyy!"
"Be quiet, you eating machine. It was only a pre-trip meal. You don't need anymore."
"But I'm still huuuuungryyyyyy!" Luffy complained, falling face-first onto the table in front of him.
"Well, deal with it, because I'm not making you any more until later." Sanji huffed, lighting a cigarette irritably.
"Hey, isn't Zoro back yet?" Nami asked as she returned from the cabin. "It's been quite a while since you guys left."
"Oh, the moron probably just got lost. Don't worry about him, Nami-san." Sanji leaned against the railing. "He'll probably show up later tonight. Doesn't mean we can't go exploring without him."
"I don't know, Sanji," Ussop said worriedly. "If we get into trouble, we may need him. Besides, what if he's in trouble right now?"
"Oh, no!" Chopper cried. "What if he's hurt? We need to go check on him!" Sanji stopped him as he tried to run off the ship.
"Easy there, pal. He's fine. As I said, he's probably lost. There's no need to worry." Chopper still struggled, the doctor in him desperate to get to his friend. Luffy crouched next to him and grinned.
"Don't worry, Chopper. Zoro's a super awesome swordsman. He's fine." Chopper looked down dejectedly, refusing to be comforted. "Besides," Luffy continued, heedless of Chopper's worry. "If he isn't back by tomorrow morning, we'll go looking for him. And get him out of whatever trouble he's in."
"Really?" Chopper asked, softening a little.
"Really." Luffy grinned, and after a minute, Chopper grinned back, all worries calmed. Soon they were all double checking their bags while Luffy tried to sneak into the kitchen again, making sure they had everything while Sanji kicked Luffy to the other end of the boat. Nami checked her maps again, refreshing her memory on their route, before folding them and putting them in her bag. Just as they were getting ready to leave, Chopper perked his ears up.
"Something's coming," he said, turning his head, trying to pinpoint the sound. Everyone looked around as well, when suddenly something hit the ship, making it sink into the water a bit, and bounce and roll on its new waves.
"What was that?" Nami cried. When the ship finally stilled, they looked to the middle of the deck and saw an odd assortment of people: a girl with long red hair in armor and a skirt; a man with black hair wearing nothing but a silver necklace and black pants; a girl with yellow hair, a slightly too-small outfit, with a set of keys at her waist; and a man with pink hair, tan trousers with a black and gold jerkin with a similar style cloth hanging from his waist, and a pale scarf around his neck.
The oddest thing however, was when the pink haired man stood up, fire flickered from his feet, smiled and said:
"See! That was so easy!" before promptly turning green and keeling over.
Erza and Gray sighed and face-palmed, shaking their head, and Lucy climbed shakily to her feet, trying to stop herself from throwing up. Giving up, she ran to the rail of the ship and hurled her guts. Suddenly, a man in a black suit with yellow hair was next to her.
"My dear lady, are you alright? If you give me just a moment, I can cook you something to calm your stomach." She groaned. "Chopper! Can you make sure she's alright? I'll be right back." A little furry creature walked up to her, but she backed away.
"Easy, young lady. Chopper is the best doctor in the world. Only the best for a beautiful young woman such as yourself." She blushed, and so did the strange doctor, who started doing a little dance.
"Eheh…calling me the best in the world won't help you at all…IDIOT!" Lucy blinked, surprised at the sudden change of conflicting attitudes.
"Don't worry about that, he doesn't do well in expressing his feelings," a woman with short orange hair said. "He gets like that whenever you compliment him."
"Uh…okay." She looked to her fellow Fairy Tail members, but they were all just watching, so she let the blue-nosed being check her pulse and temperature, along with other vitals.
"Hm…it looks like she just had a sudden shock. She should be fine."
"I'll say. Where the heck did you guys come flying from?" A man with an abnormally long nose strutted up, putting on a show of confidence, despite his knees shaking. "Keep in mind, we're pirates, so you guys b-b-better not try anything." Oh, yeah. This guy was totally nervous.
"I could say the same to you," Erza said. "What business do you have on our shores?" Cutting right to the chase. As usual.
"What do you mean?" the girl asked.
"What she means is, what do a bunch of pirates want to do here? Are you here to plunder, or restock?" Gray asked, clearly getting impatient.
"Plunder? Why would we do that?" a new man walked up, wearing a red jerkin, blue trousers, and a straw hat matching the one on their pirate flag.
"Uh…isn't that what pirates do?" Lucy asked. "I mean, pirates kinda have a nasty reputation all over the world for that and much more." They all looked blankly at us as if we just suggested the most absurd thing in the world. Then the man from before walked out with a tray of food and handed a plate to each of us.
"Uh…thanks," Gray said, surprised. "But how do we know it isn't poisoned?" The man looked offended.
"I would never disgrace food in such a way. It is a crime to waste, and poisoning food is ensuring no one would eat it." He watched us, still hesitant to eat. "If you don't want to eat it, fine, but don't throw it out. I can reuse some of the ingredients, and the rest these morons can eat." He pointed to the creature, long nosed man, and straw-hat kid. Erza considered him for a moment before digging in. She widened her eyes in surprise.
"This is delicious!" The man smiled and bowed modestly.
"Thank you, my lady. I assure you, it will help get rid of lingering stomach aches and pains and has all the nutrients required for a good meal."
"It's good, huh?" the straw-hat asked. "Sanji's the best chef in the world. So you know you're getting the best grub." He grinned, chuckling happily. They found they couldn't doubt the goofy guy's smile and eventually they all relaxed and ate.
"So…seriously. Who are you guys?" Lucy finally asked them.
"Oh, I'm sorry. We haven't introduced ourselves yet, have we? I am Sanji, the cook of this ship. The fair maiden over there would be Nami, our wonderful cartographer. The furry one would be Chopper, the ship's doctor. And the demon would be Ussop."
"Hey! I'm not a demon! I just have a long nose!" He turned to the others. "I'm actually the captain of this here crew." He bragged, striking a pose just as the as-yet-unnamed person started a fight with him.
"I'm the Captain, Ussop!" The man started chasing Ussop, who ran around the deck like a chicken with its head cut off.
"Aaaah! Sorry sorry sorry sorry!" He hid himself behind Chopper, who looked confused over what just happened.
"Okay…so who are you, Captain?" Gray asked.
"I'm Monkey D. Luffy! I'm gonna be the Pirate King!" He shouted, clutching a fist in determination. The Fairy Tail members blinked, waiting for another outburst, but none came.
"Um…Pirate King, huh?" Gray asked, unsure of what to make of it. They were interrupted from answering, though, when a disgruntled sound came from the other side of the deck.
"Oh! Natsu!" Lucy ran over where the Dragon Slayer was crumpled, holding his mouth and stomach at the same time, trying to ease his own discomfort.
"What's the matter with him?" Ussop asked. "Did he eat something?"
"No, Natsu just has some bad motion sickness," Erza explained.
"It's the moron's fault. Jetting us up like that, without regard to safety. Just leave him to suffer."
"Just you…ugh…wait, Gray. I'll…make you—blearg—eat those wordsssssssssss," Natsu mumbled, barely able to talk.
"Hang on," Chopper said, running inside. Lucy held Natsu trying to comfort him, but he just groaned in agony.
"Wait…we aren't moving. How could he have motion sickness?" Luffy asked. Ussop facepalmed.
"The water is still moving, rocking the boat. That's what's making him sick. However, he must be really sensitive for this to happen."
"Yeah, it's actually pretty funny sometimes. All he has to do is step on or in a vehicle and he gets sick. And gets off them and he's absolutely fine."
"Wow. That's pretty extreme," Sanji stated, breathing out smoke from his cigarette. "There might be some foods that can calm it, but if it's that bad, I'm not sure how well it would work." Chopper came back then, toting a few medicines. He fumbled around a bit, doing his job, then injected one of the medicines into Natsu's arm.
"While Chopper's working, what about you guys?" Ussop asked.
"Oh, right," Lucy giggled nervously. "I'm Lucy, this is Erza, Gray, and Natsu. We are members of Fairy Tail."
"Fairy Tale? You guys sit around telling stories all day? Boy, do I have a few for you! You see, when I was a boy there was this giant fish in our waters, and the village, knowing of my daring deeds, begged me to take care of it! Of course, my compassionate heart could not refuse, so I grabbed my gear and—" Ussop was striking a daring pose before Nami punched his head and he fell forward. "What was that for, Nami?" he practically roared. Lucy rolled her eyes.
"Um…not those kinds of fairy tales. It's a guild called Fairy Tail." She made a gesture for an animal's tail and everyone's eyes lit up in understanding.
"Fairies have tails?" Luffy asked, eyes wide. Erza smiled.
"We don't know. No one has ever seen a fairy." Gray grinned as well and finished the old man's favorite saying they all knew by heart.
"But wouldn't it be interesting to find out?"
"Woah!" The strawhat crew smiled excitedly, their minds wandering the far reaches of their imaginations. Luffy grinned wider.
"Sounds like an adventure to me." They laughed and talked as Natsu slowly sat up, the medicine finally taking effect.
"Woah, guys," he whined. "I do not feel good."
"Serves ya right, ya hotheaded idiot," Gray said. "For all you knew, these guys could've been real trouble. And you just go and shoot us all right in the middle of 'em, and then pass out and leave the work to us!" Natsu immediately jumped up and shoved his forehead to Gray's.
"Yeah? Well it was better than you're climbing down and swimming over plan!"
"At least it wouldn't have landed us in the middle of possible enemies!"
"But would have killed us on the way down! My way was better!"
"You wish, you—" suddenly, both boys were face first on the deck, having received yet another fist to the back of their heads.
"Enough the both of you," Erza stated while Sanji gave an impressed whistle. Luffy and Ussop were trying to hold back laughter, while Nami and Lucy were holding their heads and sighing. Chopper was hiding, trying to stay away from the fighting,
"It doesn't matter how it went, it turned out alright," Erza continued. "However. Natsu. If you ever do something that stupid again," Natsu tried to run, but was grabbed by the scarf and turned to face a very angry-looking Erza. "Then you will have to answer to me. Understood?"
"Ehe…um. Understood," he said with a nervous smile. Erza dropped him.
"Anyway," Gray started, obviously trying to change the subject before Erza turned her sights on him. "What are you guys doing off our shores?"
"Oh, nothing, really," Nami starts. "Just passing through, saw this nice lagoon, thought it would be nice for a break, and—"
"And Nami found a treasure map for these caves and we're going to explore!" Luffy interrupts. Nami immediately grabs his neck and starts strangling him.
"Every time, Luffy. Every time! Why do you do this to us!" she wails, as Ussop starts smacking him across his face.
"We could have let them think we were just passing through! Now they're gonna try to fight us!" he wails, too. They finally release a swollen-faced captain.
"I'm so sorry. I won't do it again."
"That's what you said last time!"
"Um…I don't think anyone really minds if you guys go on a treasure hunt," Lucy said, looking to Erza for confirmation.
"Correct. We only came to see if you pirates had any malicious intent. And unless your treasure hunt leads you to harm our town or its people, we have no qualms against you."
"See, it all worked out!" Luffy proclaims happily, oblivious when his crew sighed in disappointment. "Hey, you guys wanna join us?" he asked suddenly. "I mean, you're already here, and it's always fun to have an adventure, so you wanna come?" Erza and the other members of Fairy Tail smiled.
"Sounds like fun to me," Natsu's smile mirrored Luffy's, and they checked over their gear a final time before they set off into the caves.
"What about Zoro?" Ussop asked.
"What about the moss head?" Sanji groused.
"He's not back yet. Shouldn't we wait for him?" Chopper asked.
"Hehe," Luffy laughed. "He's probably on an adventure of his own. Don't worry, he'll join us when he's ready."
"Who's Zoro?" Gray asked.
"He's the idiot who always gets lost," Sanji said dismissively.
"Oh…kay…" They all shrugged as they continued into the cave.
"Woah! This is epic!" Ussop cried as he, Luffy, Natsu, and Chopper ran ahead. There were bright crystals all around them, shining a beautiful ocean blue. Their cries of joy echoed all around the cavern.
"Is this where the map leads?" Erza asked Nami, who was frantically moving the map around, trying to figure out where they were.
"Almost. This is like, right on the edge, but I'm not seeing another path to where it should be." Sanji and Erza tried to help her with the map while Gray kept looking around.
"Hey! Nami, Sanji! Take a look at this color!" Ussop runs up with a crystal in hand. "I've never seen something so blue! It's almost like the Lagoon!"
"Yeah, it's a lovely color, but it's not what we're looking for." Ussop shrugs and puts it in his bag before running off to rejoin the others.
"Hm…I'm not seeing anything either. How did you hear about the treasure here? Maybe there's a clue in that."
"We just heard that there was a place where the water is trapped. There the very rocks reach to the heavens and flames weep gems to the sky."
"To the sky? Not from it?"
"We were confused too. And the mention of fire is puzzling to say the least. There's just not enough facts!" Nami rolled the map in frustration. Sanji lit yet another cigarette calmly and exhaled.
"Well, we're here anyway, and it's a beautiful spot. Why don't I stop here for a meal and we'll go from there?" Luffy and Natsu immediately rushed up, grinning excitedly.
"That sounds like a great plan!" they shouted together. Within a few minutes, everyone was sitting in a circle, eating from the bento boxes Sanji had prepared beforehand and sharing stories. Ussop, naturally, was the main story-teller, sharing stories that didn't really happen. But Fairy Tail didn't know that, but it was clear only Natsu believed them.
"…there I was, a torch in my hand and my gear down the well behind me, as this giant worm slowly inched towards me. Of course, I could out-run it, but it's tentacles and sharp teeth provided a daring challenge to the bravest warrior of the seas! So I gripped the torch tightly, grabbed my belt, and charged straight to its face. Calling out a daring cry, I…"
"Nami, wouldn't it be best to get back to the ship and wait for Robin?" Sanji asked suddenly. "She could give us more ideas on what we could be missing."
"Hm…I hate leaving without finding the treasure, but I think you're right. She should be back later tonight, and she's better at ancient history. At the very least, she'd enjoy the trip."
"Who's Robin?" Lucy asked.
"She's our Historian. Literature, language, history, she knows almost everything. In fact, she went to your town to expand her knowledge a bit, so she probably has a better idea of the Lagoon than we do. It stands to reason she'd also have more information on the caves." Nami sighed and rolled up the map again. "Luffy, Ussop, Chopper! We're heading back!" Groans were heard as the rest of them walked back the way they came.
"He doesn't act like a Captain, does he?" Erza whispered to Nami. She smiled.
"No. He's a giant kid, always getting into trouble. But he's still our Captain." Erza, Natsu, Gray, and Lucy were very confused, but let it go while they jumped back on the ship.
"That place was great!" Natsu called out as he landed on the ship, then promptly fell over yet again.
"Aaaaah! He's motion sick again! We need a doctor!" Chopper ran around, panicked.
"Chopper! You're the doctor!" Ussop called out as he hid behind the orange trees.
"I am!?"
"Uh…is he really the doctor?"
"Yup!" Luffy laughed. "Isn't he great?"
"
I hope Natsu will be okay," Lucy mutters quietly while Erza nods in agreement. However, in a few minutes, Natsu was fine again. Still a little green, but able to comprehend conversations and move around, which was borderline miracle considering his disposition. For a while, they all sat and talked and swapped stories about their many adventures.
Fairy Tail was intrigued by the Devil Fruits of the sea and impressed when they saw Luffy and Choppers abilities. Likewise, for the Strawhats, when they saw the guild's magical abilities. They all laughed when Aquarius got mad at Lucy for summoning her for apparently no reason and quickly washed everyone overboard. Sanji and Ussop quickly grabbed Luffy and Chopper and got them all back on the boat. When they recovered, they laughed long and hard about it and asked Lucy to do it again, despite her apologies and the rest of their objections.
"Well, it sounds as if you guys had fun today," a female voice sounded from the water. Suddenly a woman in a purple suit and a purple cowgirl hat to match was gracefully stepping over the rail, followed by a man with green hair and three swords.
"Robin! And Zoro's with you!" Nami cheered.
"Hey, moss head!" Sanji jeered. "Where've you been? I turned in my earnings several hours ago. Couldn't find any?"
"Whatever, lame-brain!" Zoro smirked and pulled out a fairly big bag. "I got my earnings right here!"
"Yeah, well don't get lost tomorrow. We still have yet to solve this."
"Ha! Please. I was a bounty hunter for years before I joined this crew. The most skill you got is with common thugs on the sea."
"Yeah? Well my common thugs were more vicious than your wanna-be's any day!"
"What'd you say, idiot!?"
"Bring it, moron!" Suddenly, the two were smacked to the ground, Nami shaking her fist above them.
"Cool it! We don't need you guys wrecking the ship over a stupid bet!"
"Yeah!" Ussop cheered from behind her, Luffy laughing hysterically.
"Yes, my lovely Nami!" Sanji cheered from the ground. "I'll go make some dinner."
"What bet?" Gray asked as Sanji left for the kitchen. Robin chuckled.
"Our esteemed swordsman and great chef had a dispute a few days ago over who was stronger. See, before he joined the crew, Zoro was a bounty hunter. He hunted only when he needed to for food and passage to the next island. Our excellent doctor was asking him what it was like."
"And that moron cook decided that I was lying. I told him that he wouldn't know how to take in a wanted man if his wanted poster gave instructions. So, we made a bet out of it."
"Haha! They've been hunting bounties ever since. Whoever hunted the highest bounty wins." Luffy kept laughing side-splitting laughs while Ussop and Chopper put on their rendition of what happened.
"Which I am going to," Sanji declared as he carefully set plates in front of the women.
"You wish." Zoro muttered, and they glared at each other until Nami tapped her pen threateningly against the table. Erza laughed when they looked away from each other quickly.
"I see you have your hands full, Nami." Nami sighed dejectedly and nodded while Robin and Lucy laughed.
"Hey, what day is it anyway?" Ussop suddenly asked.
"15th, why?" Gray answered while Natsu coughed into his drink.
"Oh, I sent a letter back home a while ago, and wondered if it got there yet," he said dreamily. A sudden crash from the other side of the deck had everyone jerking up. They all blinked as Luffy slowly righted his chair, his back to them.
"Something wrong, Luffy?" Ussop asked.
"Hm? Oh, no, don't worry about it, guys." He grinned suddenly. "We're just gonna party tonight!"
"Party? For what?"
"For finding that cave, of course! And for new friends!" Sanji sighed.
"I'll go make more food." And about an hour later the party was going full throttle. Erza and Lucy laughed while Luffy and Ussop danced. Nami and Robin consulted the map and compared notes, while also drinking ale and laughing with the others. Zoro, Gray, and Natsu were in a drinking contest. Natsu kept running to the side of the boat to throw up, then running back to rejoin. Chopper kept checking on Natsu, but otherwise danced with Luffy and Ussop or laughed with Erza and Lucy. And of course, there was lots of food!
As the night grew old, everyone slowly drifted to sleep, and the night was calm and silent once more. Unbeknownst to those on board, one shadow slipped away and stretched an arm to the cliffs surrounding the Lagoon and zipped to the top.
Luffy crept through the foliage until he was at the eastern ridge of the cliffs, facing adjacent from the Lagoon. He gathered as much wood as he could, building a fire tepee as tall as he was, and lit the flame. He grabbed from his coat a bottle of Zoro's sake and sat to watch the sun rise. Just as color started to light the eastern horizon, a pillar of flame appeared next to Luffy before solidifying into his big brother, Ace.
"Hey, Luffy," he said, taking a seat next to his brother. Their grins stretched their faces as they took in each other's presence.
"Hey, Ace."
"Surprised to see me?"
"Not really. We just saw you on Alabasta, so I figured you'd be here if you could find us."
"Well, you certainly didn't make it easy. You're a little off course."
"Hehe. Nami found a treasure map, so we've been looking around for it."
"Makes sense," he chuckled, stealing a sip of the sake. They sat in companionable silence for a while, sipping sake.
"He'd be happy." Luffy nodded in agreement.
"Course, he'd be happy now too. We both have our crews and are keeping our promise." As the sun rose higher, they both lifted their glasses to the lone cup of sake sitting in front of them.
"Happy Birthday, brother." They said in unison and drank, renewing their promise yet again. A few minutes later, a rustling behind them alerted them to their friends.
"Luffy? Is everything okay?" Ussop asked.
"You've been acting strange since last night," Chopper whimpered. Luffy grinned cheekily.
"Don't worry, guys. Everything's fine. And look who decided to stop by again!" Luffy laughed as he gestured to his brother.
"Ace! What are you doing back?" Nami cried. Sanji and Zoro looked at Luffy for a moment, sensing there was more than he was telling, but didn't see anything alarming so they both let it go.
"Hey, guys!" Ace laughed. "Just checking in on my brother. I know he can be a handful, so I wanted to check in before I left the area. And it turned into a tiny celebration." Luffy laughed.
"Well, we can't have tiny celebrations, now can we," Sanji expressed.
"What do you mean?" Chopper asked.
"We're pirates," Zoro explained. "We don't do tiny celebrations." Everyone grinned.
"We do gigantic ones!" Luffy cheered, and the party was on again. The Fairy Tail members grinned from where they stood at the tree line, not altogether sure of what was going on, but happy for the Strawhats anyway.
"Natsu!" a cry came from overhead and a blue cat landed in the middle of their celebrations, carrying a strange bag. "I got it!"
"Perfect!" Natsu cheered and grabbed the bag.
"What is it, Natsu?" Erza asked while everyone gathered around the strange flying cat. Gray grinned as well and pulled something from his pocket. Natsu opened the bag and pulled out what looked like a toy microwave as well as a small tin bucket with a latch-on lid.
"Happy Birthday, Erza!" Natsu and Happy cheered. Lucy gasped.
"It's your birthday?"
"I don't really like to talk about it," Erza muttered, holding the two gifts. "But these two morons always make a big deal out of it, every year. Okay," she said louder. "What is it?"
"It's an easy bake oven!" Happy cheered. "You can bake small snacks in there easily!"
"And the tin is full of recipes you could do," Natsu put in. "We know how much you love your sweets and figured you'd enjoy being able to make them wherever you could power this up."
"It's a new item we found out about. Unfortunately, most people don't care for them, so we couldn't find one easily." Happy was circling around their heads excitedly while Luffy and Ussop were trying to catch him. Erza was shocked.
"Thank you, Natsu, Happy. I'm happy with what you chose for me." They grinned like idiots until Ussop and Luffy crashed into them both from trying to catch Happy. They were all complaining and laughing at each other when Gray walked up and subtly handed Erza a small medallion.
"What's this?"
"It's a magic item. Kind of like a memory holder if you will. I got together with the old man and he, along with about half the guild, helped make it. Any name, memory, or item you want to remember, hold this and think hard on it. It will take care of the rest. Whenever you want to look and remember whatever it is again, put it on your forehead." Erza looked at it, amazed. She had so much she wanted to forget from her childhood, but things she would never want to let go as well. She clutched it in her hands gratefully.
"Thank you," she murmurs, while behind them Nami and Sanji were now yelling at Ussop and Luffy respectively for ruining Nami's maps and stealing the rest of the food. They finished off by making them both in charge of getting more firewood. Ace was talking with Robin about various things they've seen. Zoro was drinking while Chopper was asking how he got lost. Lucy slid next to Erza.
"You know, now I've got to hurry and find you a present too."
"It's not really necessary."
"Oh, yes, it is. You're my friend. What kind of friend would I be if I couldn't spend a little time to celebrate the day you were born?" Suddenly, there were ooh's and awe's from next to the fire. Everyone was watching the flames shoot up embers of diamonds and emeralds and rubies that fell all around them like rain.
"What happened?" Nami and Gray asked.
"The crystal I grabbed from the cave fell into the fire when I put the wood down," Ussop said in wonder. They were all stunned into silence as the beautiful gems fell around them. Then laughter and cheers were heard again while Nami started to gather the priceless rocks. All the Fairy Tail guild laughed as they witnessed the competition between the boys on who could gather the most.
"Why celebrate the day you were born, when you can celebrate the day you're alive?" a soft voice behind them said. Natsu and Gray turned so fast they fell, but Erza and Lucy turned with much more control, looking at a man with a brown cowboy hat, tooth necklace, no shirt, and black shorts. He smiled at them as they pondered his advice.
"A very wise saying to live by," Erza finally said, smiling fondly as they watched Ussop drop all his gems onto Luffy's head when he realized that Luffy was expanding his hands to gather more gems than anyone else, which led to Nami yelling at Ussop for possibly losing any of their treasure and the flames flickered loudly with the clinking of rocks against each other.
"You never know what tomorrow brings. So it's important to celebrate today."
For those following my other story, chill. This is a promise I made for my sister's birthday. That story can wait while I keep my promise for her present. It's a little late (Je suis tellement désolé, ma soeur!), but better late than never.