~Best Friends~
.o0o.
For Nami the day couldn't get much better. The climate was tropical with a light breeze and no sign of any of the hell storms that the Grand Line usually liked to throw their way out of absolutely nowhere. The whole atmosphere around the Thousand Sunny was just laid back. Sanji had made her a nice fruit cocktail and a few orange topped fairy cakes to tide her over between meals. The usual suspects - Luffy, Usopp and Chopper - where entertaining themselves trying once more to teach Luffy the intricacies of Go Fish in vain. Something about having to have less cards just seemed to go against his greedy nature.
So here Nami found herself tending to Bellemere's tangerine trees, sipping a delicious drink and listening to the back track that was the Strawhat Pirate's day to day lives. Honestly, it would take a lot to ruin Nami's day.
"EEEEEEEHHHH! WHAT DO YOU MEAN?"
Nami startled causing her to accidentally snip off an unripe tangerine. Okay, maybe that would do it.
Calmly, she placed her snips down on the edge of the soil bed and got to her feet. Nami walked to the top of the stairs leading to the grass deck, taking measured breaths to ensure that she remained calm and in total control. She looked out over the deck to see who had yelled and the cause. Chopper was on his feat looking completely incensed and ready to fight Usopp. Said sniper was sitting looking very self satisfied. Luffy, currently holding no less than thirty cards, looked completely lost.
The beginnings of a headache were beginning to set in at the base of Nami's skull as she desperately tried to keep her good mood going. Thankfully Robin was sitting nearby on the bench at the base of Sunny's main mast, chuckling softly to herself.
"Good morning, Nami." Robin said as said Navigator approached her, "Is something wrong?"
"Yes, actually, I was having a nice relaxing day to myself when those knuckleheads decided to act up and make me injure one of Bellemere's trees." Nami held up the casualty of the idiot's carelessness.
Robin gave a look that was probably meant to be sympathetic but came across more amused than anything, "My that is a problem." she said, sounding almost sincere, "Is there anything I can do to help?"
"THAT'S NOT TRUE!" Chopper's indignant yell to Usopp echoed across the deck.
Nami twitched and crushed the poor fruit in her palm. Robin held her hand up to her mouth in a shallow attempt to hide her laughter at the sight of Nami on the verge of losing her patience and orange pulp dripping from her knuckles.
"You can start by telling me what's gotten them to kick off?" Nami didn't demand. That would imply she was in a mood which she REALLY WASN'T.
The innocent look Robin gave her really didn't suit given that Nami knew she used to be an assassin for a living, "How would I know?" she said merrily, "It might be something reasonable and very serious." How the archeologist managed to say that with a straight face Nami will never know.
"Cut the crap, Robin." Nami said calmly, not matter what the vein pulsing in her forehead made it seem, "I know for a fact the only rooms you don't eavesdrop on is the bedrooms and the bathroom."
"And I had to learn the bedrooms the hardway." Robin muttered.
"What was that?"
"Nothing at all."
Nami's brow twitched, "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"
Again with the innocent look, "Never."
Nami sighed in defeat, "Okay, I give. What wrong with them?"
Robin chuckled again seemingly finding the thought of it amusing, "Usopp said that he was Luffy's best friend and not Chopper or anyone else on the ship."
"Wait, that's it?" There's no way it was even a debate.
"I believe Usopp was winding Chopper up, but Chopper being the sweet boy that he is took it personally." Robin said, now hand on chin smiling up at the trio of idiots.
Despite her annoyance and exasperation at them Nami felt a wave of affection for the resident dumbasses.
"Well. I guess I best go and put an end to this before it get out of hand. " Nami said marching off in their direction. Robin waved her off merrily.
"If you decide to skin them I have a tarp you can use" she called out.
Nami looked over her shoulder at the older woman, "You need to do something about your sense of humour."
.o0o.
The scene Nami arrived to was on of borderline hilarity and silliness. About what she'd long since come to expect from this crew. Chopper was clinging to Usopp's face like a dropbear and slapping away at the top of the sniper's head yelling profanities. Usopp was desperately clawing at Chopper trying to wedge the reindeer off of his face, gasping for air. Luffy, like any reasonable captain, was clutching his stomach laughing his ass off at the ordeal his subordinates where putting each other through. The cards lay forgotten on the deck.
Nami loomed over them unnoticed for several seconds before put on her most stormy expression and yelled,
"JUST WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?"
All three of them leaped out of their skins immediately and began peddling back up to Sunny's head. Nami grinned, satisfied with a job well done. She stalked up to them watching as their did their best to make themselves as small as possible lest she decide to take Robin up on her offer.
"Look what you made me do!" Nami pointed at the now drying tangerine juices and pulp in her hand, "Are you trying to ruin my day?"
"We're so sorry." they began bowing rapidly in an attempt to gain forgiveness.
"We were playing cards when Usopp claimed that he was Luffy's best friend and no one else, and that Luffy couldn't be anyone else's best friend." Chopper sounded close to tears with his explanation.
Nami couldn't help but feel bad for Chopper, it was easy to forget how young he was compared to the rest of the crew. For as immature as Luffy acted, Nami was at least 80% convinced he was faking it get out of chores and just mess around. The little doctor, however, was that immature, especially given how stunted his childhood was, both being feared as a monster and not being around anyone his age. This sort of thing was important to him.
Usopp at least had the decency to look ashamed when Nami directed her glare at him, with the unspoken demand that he explain.
"We were talking about friends and I brought up how everyone has a best friend. These two," he pointed at the dismayed Chopper and confused Luffy, "Didn't know what I meant. After I explained the concept, Luffy didn't get it."
Luffy shook his head, "Nope. Not at all."
Nami shook her head, of course he didn't. It was like with cards and food. Luffy just can't internalize the idea of only having one of something. Except maybe his hat.
"But Chopper did," Usopp continued, "So he, reasonably, claimed that he and Luffy were best friends. I saw the opportunity to wind him up a little but I really didn't expect him to take it so personally." his head dropped in penance, clearly realising the wrong he had done.
The urge to smack them over their heads for being stupid was surprisingly absent from Nami. This wasn't something she could bring herself to be angry at them for. Maybe another day when things weren't so nice or maybe just the sheer pitious looks on both Chopper and Usopp's faces. But not this time.
Nami took a deep breath, the three below her flinching, clearly expecting a verbal lashing, and exhaled. She got on her haunches and pat Chopper on top of his head affectionately,
"Chopper, Luffy can be your best friend. Usopp was just teasing you."
Chopper looked up, hope dawning on his face, looking between her and the captain. They both nodded.
"Yay!" he exclaimed grabbing them both for a hug. Nami and Luffy pat him on the back before Nami stood up again.
"Usopp!" she point a finger at him. He squawked to attention, "Don't say stuff like that in the future. Be more careful." he nodded furiously, his nose bouncing almost humorously.
"Luffy!" she moved her finger to the captain, who jumped to attention with a blank expression, "As a general rule. Stop being a dumbass."
"No can do." he replied effortlessly.
It was stuff like that that made her question her captain's lack of intelligence. Nami made to turn back to Bellemere's tangerine bushes when Chopper called out to her.
"Nami? Your smart and you've known Luffy for a long time, who would you say is his best friend?"
Nami stopped in her tracks. She folded her arm and put a finger to her chin in mock contemplation. In all honest it was a good question. Everyone on the crew had a reasonable claim to it. Zoro being the First Mate and the one who knew Luffy longest. Chopper and Usopp being the one's around Luffy's age that he related to most on that level. Robin as he got them all to fight the world for her - not that they were unwilling - and she's the only one even remotely able to get Luffy to look at a book. Hell Brook and Franky were a good shout for how much Luffy respected them for their skills.
"YOU'RE DAMN RIGHT I WILL!"
"Well, since I'm the one your asking," she turned to them with a wink,
"It's clearly me."
.o0o.
How'd I do?