When We Are Old...
By Yukirei (a.k.a. Cosmiko Ling)
Pairing: none
Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or any of its characters. One Piece belongs to Oda Eiichiro-sensei. This is a non-profit fanfiction written by a fan, for the enjoyment of other fans.
Summary: Have you ever imagined - what will happen to the Straw Hats when they are old?
Author's Notes: This was my 2nd or 3rd (depending if you count crossovers) OP fic. A result of too much OP watching. :D
Takes place before the Straw Hat pirates enter the Grand Line.
They waved to the old lady and thanked her for her tea as they left the house. She returned a toothless smile and thanked them for their help and company.
"It seems tough being old..." Usopp remarked with a shudder as they took the path leading to the harbour. "One knock and you're almost dead."
"I didn't know she would get hurt so easily..."
"YOU SHOULDN'T EVEN BE RUNNING AROUND LIKE THAT IN THE FIRST PLACE!"
"But, meat..."
"Did you even have the money to buy it?"
Luffy frowned.
Nami sighed. "See. Really, can't you be more careful next time?" She said, though knowing fully well that she was asking for the impossible. "It's lucky that the old granny just had a shock and was not actually hurt this time."
Luffy nodded. There was fiery determination in his eyes...
"Nami-swaan! I'm back! ♥"
...that vanished as he spun around and ran towards their cook who was walking towards them with a gigantic sack over his shoulders and a scowling swordsman behind him heaving an equally huge (neither wanted the other to be able to say that he could carry more) sack.
"MEAT! MEAT!" Luffy crowed as he bounded towards the duo.
"Is he even listening?" Nami shook her head in exasperation, then started after their captain.
Usopp followed, still seeming to be preoccupied with his thoughts. "I can imagine myself when I'm old..."
A skinny old man sat in a rocking chair by a warm fireplace, reading glasses perched on a long nose, unruly white curls peeking out under a wool hat that hid the bald patch on the top of his head, surrounded by a handful of little children who listened eagerly to the grand accounts of his youth that left his lips as he rocked slowly to and fro.
"...recounting the wondrous adventures of Captain Usopp! to the kids in the village."
"Half of which are lies?" Nami asked jokingly.
"Which may be lies now, but which I'll make into reality."
"Hmm..." Nami said, contemplating. "I'll probably be one rich old woman, enjoying a peaceful, relaxed life in a grand mansion full of my treasures, located in some nice, quiet village somewhere."
A petite but healthy old lady gazed out into a meadow of lush green, dotted with white and yellow of dandelions, from where she stood at the edge of an orchard of vibrant orange and green, a shovel in her hand, an enormous luxurious-looking mansion standing tall behind her. A smile spread across her lips as a light breeze tugged her hair away from her face. Pieces of paper filled with detailed drawings seen through the long windows the only evidence of an eventful past.
"Can I join you in your mansion, Nami-san♥?"
They had reached the fork where the two paths joined into one and were now all walking together to the harbour and their ship that was already in sight.
"I'll cook nutritious and delicious meals for you so that you'll live a healthy life till a ripe old age, maintaining eternal beauty!♥"
The doors to the mansion opened and a lanky pale-almost-white-haired old man waltzed out from the mansion, plates piled with richly coloured, glorious-looking food in his hands, calling out to the petite old woman as he set the dishes on the white garden table, rosy pink hearts in his eyes. The petite old lady turned around, sending him an enchanting smile.
"Old Nami-san will be very attractive too♥!"
"Of course," Nami said proudly, then gave Sanji a smack on the head the next moment. "But what are you imagining?"
"You probably wouldn't even be able to taste your own cooking by then, with all the toxin you are chugging down, idiot love-cook," Zoro said gruffly, not feeling too happy about having to folow the cook around with his grocery shopping now that the adrenaline of the earlier argument had worn off. He had originally wanted to do a little shopping at 'the next town' too. Then, Nami reminded him of his debt. "You'll probably just be sitting in the corner of some street, puffing away your last breaths of life."
The mansion, the meadow, the orchard and the smiling petite old woman faded away into wisps of white smoke and the lanky pale-haired old man found himself in a wicket chair on an otherwise empty porch, staring out at the quiet street listlessly with cloudy blue eyes, a stream of smoke curled into the air from between his lips, a glowing cigarette between fingers that were colourd yellow from years of smoking.
"Oi..." Sanji came to a halt and glared at Zoro for bursting his fantasy cloud. "And you'll be sitting right across the street polishing your swords day-in, day-out with nothing better to do, shitty swordsman."
In the porch across the street sat a scowling old man, rubbing carefully with great concentration at the dazzling blade of one of his katana, the other two resting silently in their scabbards beside him. For a brief moment, he glanced up. His eyes clashed with the glare of the lanky pale-haired old man sitting across the street, and narrowed. He got to his feet, never one to stand down from a challenge, though he had long defeated all others wielding swords who had crossed his path in his younger days. Slipping the katana into its sheath, he picked up the two leaning against the wall and strutted into the streets, stopping in the middle, and exchanging glares with the lanky pale-haired man who had also stood from his chair and shuffled out into the street. The only challenge he got these days, the only tingle left that still reminded him of the excitement of the fight... It was lonely at the top.
"You guys are so pessimistic..."
Loud noises outside called their attention. The little children and the long-nosed old man on the rocking chair ran up to the windows and poked their heads out of them curiously, squeezing above or beside one another. The long-nosed old man turned pale and quickly moved to close the windows, shoo-ing the children from them as they persisted in asking why he didn't go out and try to stop the fight and bring peace to the street. He stared at them for a long moment, speechless, then as if making up his mind, walked to the door, opened it, told the children to stay in the safety of the house and resolutely stepped into the streets, boots crushing gravel.
"When I'm old..." Luffy began as he continued to prance around Sanji and Zoro, mouth already watering at their sacks.
All heads turned to Luffy, surprised that their captain had actually been paying attention to the conversation.
"...I'll be eating meat."
Sweatdrops appeared.
An old man with a straw hat perched on his head ravenously shoved plates piled with meat into his mouth, no sign of weakening teeth or dietary system from old age, as the bar owner and customers stared at him curiously.
"And I heard that your muscles will start sagging, so my arms will probably be like that." Saying, Luffy let his arms stretch down to the ground and beyond such that they were hanging limply by his sides and dragging on the earth.
The arms of the old man with the straw hat suddenly grew in length; the eyes of the bar owner and customers turned rounder and wider with shock or horror and jaws fell to the ground.
"But I'll still miss Sanji's cooking!"
The old man with the straw hat suddenly burst out of the bar, running into the dusty streets, long arms trailing behind him (like jelly sticks). Finding the lanky pale-haired old man and the scowling old man fighting outside their houses, he ran straight into them, all falling in a heap of legs and arms. Cook me meat! The old man with the straw hat demanded.
All three got back on their feets, two shouting curses and insults, one shouting demands, all adding to the confusion, not one able to make out what the other two were saying. A petite old woman suddenly appeared and struck all three on the head with her shovel.
"Put that back!" Nami ordered. Though she had seen Luffy's arms stretch countless times, the sight of them dragging on the ground like that was still somewhat disturbing.
"And you two, stop the petty squabbling and get moving."
"Hai, Nami-san♥!" Sanji immediately responded, resuming movement, a light skip in his steps.
Zoro grunted and shifting the sack on his back slightly, began walking again as well.
"Nami-san, is there anything in particular that you want to eat tonight♥?"
The lanky pale-haired old man extended an invitation to the petite old woman to stay for dinner, and when she accepted, shuffled back into his house happily, leaving a remark that he could feed the others too, including the long-nosed old man hiding behind the tree outside the next house.
"Meat! Meat!"
"I'm asking Nami-san, you idiot."
Within moments, sounds of crockery and kitchen utensils being dragged out could be heard, and then, aroma of cooking food drifting out from the window. The old man with the straw hat cheered loudly, long arms swinging around hazardously, declaring that he caught a whiff of cooking meat through a repetitious single word chant.
Dinner together was always good!
Date written: 29 October 2005, around midnight
Last edited: 10 November 2005, 02:45