Happy Tashigi's Birthday!
I know, I'm late, but I remembered, okay.
Enjoy the short.
I do not own any of Oda's character. :(
It was a nice day out on the seas, no weird occurances for about three hours, and Tashigi was getting suspicious. Maybe it was just paranoia, or she was just so used to weird that normal seemed strange. After Punk Hazard, anything was just about darned possible in her book.
The ship that was brought to the G-5 was equipped with special chambers so they were able to house all of the children, small or tall, rescued from Punk Hazard, in a single ship. That said, the children later had to be seperated due to a breakout of a stomach bug (virus), and so Tashigi had spent the past two hours convincing the kids in the infirmary to take some medications following lunch and eventually singing them a lullaby for a nap after.
Which is why Tashigi had to get back to the healthy children she had left under the care of Vice Admiral Smoker and a few G-5 soldiers. These children had been quiet for far too long, something was definitely going on that had them so attentive.
The Marine Captain heard a few giggles as she entered the hallway, so she perked her ears for anything within earshot.
"So what did they do?" asked the voice of a girl.
"Yes, Smo-yan tell us! We really want to know!"
'Those last few were certainly some of the G-5. But what was that? Was Smoker-san telling a story?!' Tashigi crept close to the room, but stayed out of sight. She had never heard Smoker tell a made up story before.
"Well, in the end the two lovers were thick skulled and told everyone who had a problem to eat shi- I mean, mind their own business. They couldn't be together though. You see they weren't exactly in the same boat."
"Oh, so is this like Romeo and Juliet, then?" asked Mocha voice this time, it seemed.
Smoker replied with a matter of fact tone of voice. "Not exactly, these two are fighters, so they wouldn't let each other die."
"Wow, you have such good imagination Smo-yan!"
"I didn't know you could be as romantic as you are tough?" The G-5 soldiers complimented their Vice Admiral with such conviction. Tashigi giggled quietly as she continued listening in.
"Romantic?! I was telling an action adventure story! You kids started asking about the characters' love life."
"Well then what about the kiss you said, after that one big fight the couple had?" It was a boy this time, looking to catch the man off guard, to whom he replied.
"That... Spur of the moment, I think."
The room was silent for a few seconds then another girl whispered.
"Have you ever fallen in love?"
Smoker grunted then answered the girl a bit irritated.
"It's like a cage, and you can't cage smoke, that's not for me."
'Cage? Smoker-san compares love to a cage? When I think cage, I think ..Hina-san? No, don't overthink things Tashigi, Hina and Smoker, a couple, nah? Dang...I ship it.'
Brushing her shipping aside, Tashigi cleared her throat as she walked in the door.
"Ehem, what's not for you Smoker-san?"
The G-5 sprang up faster than the children. " Love! Captain-chan! It's love!" They had hearts in their eyes and they did a little dance they learned from Black Leg Sanji.
'Thanks a lot.' Thought Tashigi with the most dead pan voice she had in her mind. She'll kick that particular Strawhat, for that, next time they meet.
"Sit down! I was speaking to Vice Admiral Smoker! How were the children while I was gone, by the way?"
"They were fine; you were only gone for about three hours. They wanted to hear a story so I told them one. You might like it, little lady."
"Really? Wait, I told you, don't call me that. What was it about?"
"Lov-" Tashigi punched the G-5 soldier before he repeated his little number. Realizing the children were there, she quickly added, "I'm sorry, but please don't do that again."
"It started out as an action adventure story, but these little runts turned the tide and somehow we ended with starcrossed lovers or some bull sh- stuff like that."
"Smo-yan has some imagination, huh?" Everyone turned from the soldier to Smoker with expectation.
"No. Based on what some Marines told me once and what these kids made me say. Anyway, Tashigi did you get the reports to my office?"
"Yes."
"Well then, I'm off. You can take it from here."
"Yes, sir. G-5, you can head out as well, I've got the children covered."
"But.."
"No but's! Get back to work!"
Once Tashigi swept the lifeless lumps of the sad G-5 out the doors, she closed it behind her and addressed the children. They were eager to tell her Smoker's (and partly their) story.
"Okay children, would you mind recapping the story for me?"
"Yes! Can we make paper dolls for the ending we just made up?"
"Sure. You two go work on those while the others start the story."
Tashigi took a seat on the floor and invited the childen to do the same.
"Okay, start from the beginning."
"I'll do that part." said the large blonde boy. "Once there was a brave man, who fought to protect the villagers of small towns even if nobody really liked him."
'This has definitely got to be about Smoker-san.' thought Tashigi.
"He traveled the seas and fought different bad guys as he went, getting stronger and stronger. One day, he arrived at a town where he thought he could help. A girl was in trouble. But it turned out the girl was strong herself."
'Oh, come on, that is so Hina-san.'
"She defeated the bad guys so fast, the man was shocked."
'Okay, so this has to be about the time Hina and Smoker met. So, she impressed him first? Wow, who knew?'
"But the girl got confused and attacked the guy because she thought he was with the bad guys."
'That is such a Hina thing to do, attack first, ask questions later.'
"They were so mad at each other during the fight that they didn't even notice a crowd of Marines were watching."
"The Marine soldiers were confused, were they enemies or were they boyfriend and girlfriend? They looked at each other and no one knew what was going on."
"Yeah, they were so confused. Haha, I'll finish the story." Said a cute girl in a ponytail.
"The guy knocked the girls weapon out of her hands and pinned her to the wall. But he didn't hurt her. The Marines saw that he leaned in and whispered something to her. They thought they saw him kiss her."
'Okay, that is a little too intense to be telling the children. I think I need to have a word with Smoker-san. Ugh, but it'll be awkward now, knowing how he and Hina met and all.'
"The guy put his sword back in his uuhh.."
"Wait, did you say sword?" Smoker doesn't, or ever has used a sword, thought Tashigi.
"Yes, he put his sword in the thingy swordsmen use to hold swords in."
"The sheath?"
"Oh yeah! That. The girl yelled at him again, then they seperated and they didn't see each other for a while, maybe just a glimpse one time, but then years later they met again."
'Okay so maybe it wasn't about Hina and Smoker.'
"Oh? ...And what did they do then?" 'Where did Smoker-san say he got this story?'
"Smokey says that the first thing they did was yell at each other. Then the girl was distracted so a monster hurt her. The guy carried her to safety, but before leaving, he gave her a kiss."
The tall blonde boy got up in protest.
"That's not true. Smokey didn't say that, Mocha did."
"What?! Well, yeah I did, but because it looked like he would kiss her after carrying her."
'The kids are getting a little too carried away with this story, I need to calm them down.'
"Okay, keep your cool. I-it's just a made up story, there's no need to get mad. You can make up your own endings if you don't like this one." offered Tashigi with a choppy smile and a shrug.
"We're done with the dolls!" yelled the two children with the paper dolls.
The children and Tashigi turned to see them smiling as they brought their creations over.
"And they lived happily ever after."The children brought the dolls into view and then together for a kiss.
"Ahh." Tashigi half yelled, but was too lost for words. The girl doll wore a pink coat, she had red glasses and blue black hair. The boy doll...was very green.
*Smoker chuckled as he heard Tashigi coming down the hall to his office.