Prologue

Nami looked around the room and met the eyes of her crew. One by one they gave their approval with small, solemn nods. They looked hopeful, confident even, but Nami knew their tells. Robin's crossed arms and Usopp's fidgeting, the tremble in Chopper's bottom lip and the way Sanji passed his cigarette from one hand to another. She could read them, and she knew they didn't miss the tremble in her hands.

They all knew this could fail, that it was a bit ridiculous to even entertain the thought that such a thing could be possible. But what wouldn't they try? What wouldn't they do for even the chance of getting back what they'd lost?

Her eyes landed on the only person who'd yet to react. They all needed to agree, yes, but he was the captain. They wouldn't do this- no, they couldn't do this- without his consent.

"Zoro?" she pressed.

All eyes darted between them. The optimist and the skeptic. The dreamer and the realist. She never envisioned them on such opposite ends of an issue; not one as serious as this.

Zoro's gaze was hard. It was always hard these days, and while he'd never been the chattiest of the crew, his new silence unnerved her. Even Chopper, who'd clung to Zoro for days following that day, was hesitant to approach him lately.

Nami took a deep breath. She felt the cool metal in her hands and knew she was gripping onto it as though her life depended on it. And maybe it did. Maybe all of their lives depended on it. But Zoro still hadn't answered and Nami felt as though her heart might shatter all over again. Could she do it alone? Take this risk, if the others wouldn't? Did she have the right? She didn't want it to come to that.

"Zoro, we have to try...we can't…" her voice broke, and she knew her emotions were getting the better of her. A steady hand landed softly on her shoulder. Warm. Reassuring.

Sanji.

The cook and the swordsman shared a long look. The usual heat was gone, had been fading gradually away those last few weeks until all that was left were two men who spoke to each other like distant acquaintances. Something passed between them. An understanding? A promise? She couldn't tell. But at last, Zoro nodded.

"Fine. Do it."

Around her a collective breath was released. She could feel their anticipation, their hope. It had to work. It had to.

Nami held the mirror out in front of her until she could see her own reflection. Her eyes were rimmed with red. Her skin looked pale and blotchy. A month ago it would have shocked her to see that reflection. But, everything was different a month ago.

Her crew crowded around her, gathering closer until shoulders bumped and hands were held. Nami cleared her throat and began.

"I wish… "

Chapter One

"Luffy!" Nami shouted, stomping over to where the cause of her irritation was huddled. His head shot up in alarm, followed by two more.

"You said she'd never notice!" She heard their sniper whisper.

"AH! Nami's gonna kill us! Put it back! Put it back!" Chopper cried.

"How!? YOU knocked it off"

"Me!? It was definitely you, Usopp!"

"But if you say it was you she won't be as mad!"

"Oh, hi Nami" Luffy said, stepping in front of Chopper and Usopp as though he could block her view.

Nami glared over his head to the two still huddled in the grass. They were definitely up to something, but it would have to wait.

She held up a large, thick piece of parchment. Her latest project, a map of the last island they docked at. Four hours of hard work and careful measurements. Luffy looked up at it stupidly.

"What's this?" She asked, pushing the map into his face.

"A map?"

"I know it's a map, idiot! What I want to know is why there's soy sauce spilled across half of it!"

"Oh, sorry Nami! I was hiding from Sanji and he knows I'm not allowed to eat in your room so it was the perfect place to hide but-"

"THIS is why you can't in my room, Luffy!" Nami growled, bringing her fist down onto his head. Luffy cried out and held his head with a pout.

"You can redraw it though, you're really good at that. And fast!" Luffy exclaimed, making it sound every bit like a compliment instead of an excuse for his recklessness. And he was right. Once she had the details down the first time, redrawing a map only took a fraction of the time the original did.

"Honestly," Nami sighed, shaking her head, "are there any rules you actually follow? And you two!" she called, stopping Usopp and Chopper in their tracks, "don't think I don't know you're hiding something. Let's see it."

One mikan and two punches later Nami finally took a seat in her favorite lawn chair. Robin was already there, engrossed by a thick red book.

"Were the boys causing you trouble again?" She asked, although they both knew she had watched the whole exchange.

"Sometimes I really don't know what to do with them" Nami sighed, thinking of the fallen mikan and her ruined map. No matter how many times she warned him, nothing short of the threat of starvation could keep Luffy in line. They were all used to it, but every so often Nami's patience for her captain's antics wore thin.

"Luffy certainly keeps things interesting" Robin mused, "though, he did try to fix his mistake this time."

Nami blinked in surprise, wondering exactly what Luffy thought he could do to remove such a dark stain. Robin pulled a square of paper from between the pages of her book and handed it to her. Nami realized it was a folded up piece of her cartography paper and spread it out over her lap.

"He showed me the map yesterday, along with his own attempt at copying it. I think he realized his map wouldn't meet your standards, but I thought you might like to see it for yourself," Robin explained.

Nami looked over Luffy's attempt and couldn't help the smile that lifted the corners of her lips. It was terrible. The lines were sloppy, the scale was all wrong, and there was an inky fingerprint pressed into the corner.

Nevertheless, she gently folded it back up again and tucked it into her bikini top.

"I'm still charging him for my time. And for the paper. "

"Of course" Robin agreed, hiding a smile behind her book.

Luffy slumped over the galley table groaning pathetically. Dinner was a new recipe that his cook was dead set on getting perfect the first time, but unfortunately that pushed dinner time back an hour later than usual.

"Sanjiiiii, foooood!"

"I already told you to wait!"

"Can I lick the bowl?"

"Like hell you can! I still haven't replaced the last one you licked."

"I promise I won't eat the bowl this time. Pleeeease, Sanji? I'll leave you alone until dinner," Luffy begged, looking up pathetically from where his head rested in his arms.

With a sigh Sanji snatched a wooden spoon from an empty dish and held it out. "Bring that spoon back in one piece or the cost of replacing it comes out of the meat budget," he warned.

"Thanks, Sanji! You're the best!" Luffy exclaimed, bouncing out of the kitchen. The spoon was licked clean by the time he reached the deck and plopped down next to a napping Zoro. Luffy slumped against him, not noticing the eye that cracked open for the briefest moment, or the way Zoro shifted slightly until Luffy's head could rest against his shoulder.

He napped comfortably that way until his internal meal clock woke him. Sure enough, Sanji was calling out for the crew to come eat just seconds later. At the table, the crew ate, drank and laughed. They talked about the islands ahead. They guarded most of their food and let their captain steal his usual share.

After dinner, everyone gathered on the deck to hear Brook's newest composition. Sanji passed out dessert to the women first, and as was their routine, Robin discretely passed half her share to Luffy. The captain repaid her with an appreciative smile before -as was his routine- Sanji smacked Luffy upside the head for accepting Robin's offering.

After a night full of laughter, bickering, drinking, and music the crew headed to bed. Nami and Robin pulled the blankets down from their bed and changed into more comfortable clothes. A soft gleam out of the corner of her eye had Nami doing a double take. A hand mirror rested there, a new addition to the room. Silver framed and in impeccable condition, especially considering where they'd found it. She took it in her hands and saw her reflection staring back at her.

Except it was… wrong. It wasn't her reflection. It was no doubt herself she was seeing, but her eyes shouldn't be that shadowed. Her hair wasn't that unkempt. And her lips…

She raised a hand to her mouth, just to be sure. No. Her lips weren't moving. So why?

"Nami, is something wrong?"

Nami startled at Robin's voice and when she looked back at the mirror there was nothing unusual to be seen. She frowned but shook her head.

"I think I'm just tired," she sighed, placing the mirror back down. She spent the next hour tossing and turning, sneaking glances at the mirror until she'd had enough. With an annoyed sigh she got up, grabbed the mirror and placed it on the deck outside of their door.

With it gone, she fell into a deep, restful sleep. Even the flash of light that crept between the cracks of the bedroom door didn't wake her.

Luffy groaned and shifted in his hammock. That dream again, the one where he was always too late. Different people, different settings, but always the same feeling of absolute loss. Some might call them different nightmares, but Luffy knew they were all sprouted from the same dark seed in his mind. With practiced silence, Luffy crept out of the men's room and onto the deck, sneaking an extra careful look toward his sleeping cook before softly closing the door behind him. He didn't need to sneak to the kitchen. Franky was on watch, and if Luffy was spotted he knew the cyborg would turn a blind eye and half-heatedly apologize to Sanji in the morning. Franky was nice like that.

He was halfway across the deck when he felt suddenly compelled to turn around. He squinted through the darkness. There was something on the top deck. Something glowing in front of the girl's room. Knowing that he'd be in more trouble with Nami if he woke her up than he'd ever be with Sanji for stealing a midnight snack, he crept up the stairs slowly to avoid any creaky planks.

As soon as he reached the top, the glow disappeared. Luffy looked down at the mirror at his feet. He recognized it as the one Nami had "ooh"ed and "ahh"ed over when they looted that enemy ship a couple weeks back. There's no way Nami would just leave it out where it could break. Luffy decided he'd leave it in the galley for her to find in the morning. He knelt to pick it up but when his hand wrapped around the handle the glass exploded in a blinding blue light.

He opened his mouth to cry out in surprise but nothing came. The light consumed everything. The mirror fell back onto the deck. A web of long, thick cracks splintered out from the middle. The light faded, almost seeming to be sucked back into the cracks in the glass. The splintered pieces melted back together until the glass was once again flawless. The night pressed on.

Luffy woke up on the infirmary floor, his head just inches from the closed door. He pushed himself into a sitting position and took in the dark room, wondering briefly how he'd ended up there in the first place. He couldn't really remember how he'd gotten here but he wasn't hurt as far as he could tell, so he wouldn't worry too much about it.

It didn't surprise him to find the galley dark and empty. It was far too quiet when he woke up to expect anyone to be awake. Had he come to raid the kitchen and…what? Fell asleep on the way? It still didn't add up in his mind, but the important thing was that Sanji hadn't caught him before he could get a snack.

To Luffy's delight the fridge was completely unlocked. That never happened since Franky installed a new security system on the door. It didn't matter how hard he hit it, or how many combinations he tried, the lock was Luffy-proof, just as Franky had promised. That usually only left the dried goods to choose from which were a poor substitute for the fridge's treasures.

Inside the fridge, however, was a disappointing selection of fruit, vegetables, and what looked like some sort of fish. No meat. Luffy's heart sank at the sight. It wasn't fair. The one time Sanji forgets to lock the fridge and there's nothing worth stealing. Still, hungry was hungry and food was food. He piled fruit up in his arms and stretched his neck out to take the fish with his teeth.

While he ate he tried to think back to the last thing he could remember. He'd stayed behind after dinner to see if Sanji would give him any leftovers. He knew he'd seen a whole shelf of meat when Sanji had opened the door! The whole fridge had been packed, and there were even custards and chocolate puddings on the top shelf for dessert. Had he already eaten it all and forgotten about it? That didn't make sense, either. Luffy was so deep in thought he didn't notice the sound of hesitant footsteps approaching from outside, or the painfully slow creak of the galley door.

Sleep had never been easy for Sanji. Deep sleep was reserved for people whose childhoods didn't involve sneak attacks and midnight hazing. Four weeks ago Sanji would have argued that deep sleep was also a luxury granted to cooks whose captains couldn't empty an entire fridge in an hour. Four weeks ago he'd have sat up in his bunk and squinted through the shadows to reassure himself there was only one empty bed instead of two.

Now it hurt too much to look that way and Sanji avoided it. He avoided it the same way Nami's gaze avoided the figure head- the same way Usopp would only fish alone. The only thing worse was seeing the gap left at the galley table. The first morning they'd gathered and Sanji had forced them all to sit and eat dammit the sight of that void had hurt like a knife twisting in his gut.

All Sanji could do now was find something to focus on until sleep managed to wrap its long fingers around him and carry him away. Tonight it was the waves lapping at the sides of the ship. Every so often one especially strong wave would break harder than the others and Sanji found himself waiting for that break in rhythm.

It was only due to this careful, purposeful listening that Sanji noticed the very distinct sound of the refrigerator door opening. Nami and Brook were on watch. Nami had probably sent the musician to fetch a midnight snack, of which Sanji knew there were slim pickings. It was as good an excuse as any to abandon his hopeless pursuit of sleep and he hardly made a sound as he made his exit.

For the first time in Sanji's life he experienced the true meaning of the phrase "froze up." His heart stopped in his chest. His legs wouldn't cross the galley's threshold. His lips, which were parted in the beginnings of a greeting, paused. He couldn't say how long he stayed that way, just watching as a ghost helped himself to half the remaining provisions as ravenously as a starved dog. Time seemed to freeze until a pair of deep brown eyes rose to meet his own.

Luffy quickly did what he always did when Sanji caught him red handed and stuffed the entire fish in his mouth before it could be taken away. He closed his eyes and steeled himself for the impending kick, but it never came. Instead, two soft hands cupped his cheeks and tilted his face up.

Luffy looked up at Sanji in surprise. He was scrutinizing him, searching for something, though Luffy had no idea what. "It worked" Luffy barely heard Sanji whisper.

What worked?

Before Luffy knew what was happening two strong arms wrapped around him and pulled him into a tight hug. Luffy's eyes went wide in surprise. A hug was the last thing he was expecting from Sanji of all people.

Luffy was never one to reject a hug from a friend, but he found himself too confused to return it. "Sanji?" He gasped. It was hard to catch his breath in the bone-crushing embrace.

Sanji pulled back quickly- as though Luffy's voice had woken him from a dream- but his hands firmly gripped Luffy's shoulders. Luffy reached up and used his palm to wipe at the tears that were now streaming unapologetically from watery blue eyes.

Luffy didn't scare easily, but this uncharacteristic outburst was terrifying him. Had he finally pushed his cook to his limit with his midnight snack raids? Nami always said he'd give her a nervous breakdown one day. Is that what he'd done to Sanji?

"H-hey- Sanji, it's OK! I won't take food at night anymore, OK? I promise! So… please don't cry!"

There was a pregnant pause before the laughter started and Luffy was caught in yet another inescapable hug.

Before Luffy could further ponder his friend's sanity the galley door swung open again and Luffy felt a wave of relief when Nami appeared. It was short lived. Suddenly there were two sets of arms squeezing the air out of him and Luffy was very thankful that his organs were made of rubber.

Nami's soft sobs sent alarm bells ringing in every corner of his mind. What the hell was going on?

Little did he know his night would only get stranger.

A/N- My entry for Tumblr's 2018/2019 One Piece Big Bang event. Cover art credit goes to saltymagus (Tumblr), whom I had the pleasure of collaborating with on this project. Reviews and feedback are very appreciated!