Disclaimer: I'd like to throw it out there that Eiichiro Oda owns One Piece. Most of the characters in this story are original, but the setting is not. The Grand Line... North Blue... East Blue... West Blue... South Blue... All Blue... Skypeia... Luffy... Nami... Zoro... Sanji... All belong to Oda-sensei. As do all those cool characters and inventions I forgot to(was too lazy to) mention.
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Chapter One: Inherited Dreams
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It was noon on the small island. The white mansion loomed ahead of everything else, towering over the trees and overlooking the vast sea. A man that looked to be in his late forties ran about, calling a certain dreamy redhead's name.
"Hellllllllooooooooo! Natalia! Where are you? It's lunch time! Cook-chan is waiting for you!" He cupped his hands around his mouth and tried again, after receiving no answer. "NAAAATAAAALIAAAA!"
Said cook walked calmly out to the front porch, watching her husband call feverishly for his employer's daughter. "Darling, come inside. Your own lunch is getting cold, and I already made Natalia a bento to take with her today."
The man, Malcom, frowned. "Jackie, you let her get away with too much. A young lady of her stature…"
"I know, I know." The cook rolled her eyes. "Her life is supposed to be all work and no play, right?"
Malcom reeled back. "N-No! I-I mean…"
"She's just a child, Malcom. Relax a little! Be glad she's not half as bad as we were when we were her age." Jackie smiled kindly. "Come eat."
Malcom shuddered visibly, as if picturing what kind of children the couple had been. He let a stiff, forced smile fill his face. "Yes dear."
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
Natalia looked up sharply.
"NAAAATAAAALIAAAA!" Malcom's familiar cry filled the air. After this shout, no more followed.
Natalia relaxed, and looked back to her work. "Just another week or two," she told the wood, "and we'll be on our way to One Piece." Her hands aching from months of hard work, she sighed and found the bento Jackie had made up for her. "If Malcom's calling for me already, I guess it's lunch time."
Her back to the sun, Natalia sat in the cool grass, cooled by the gentle wind, and looked to her masterpiece.
A large ship, tied to the inside of a cave, docked in a cove, loomed there, nearing completion. Natalia smiled, remembering the shattered and beaten condition the ship had been in before all of Natalia's inexperienced handiwork had been administered. In fact, the ship was now completed, and the simple fact that the ship was now bobbing before her in the water meant that her handiwork was adequate.
However, being the perfectionist she was, Natalia wasn't satisfied. Sure, her work was 'adequate' but it needed to be better. She knew from experience that this ship deserved it. She finished her bento, abandoning her happy thoughts of riding and sailing her ship to the next island.
Driven by a familiar urge, she made her way to the deck, then below it, walking down the rooms both designed and constructed by herself, and made her way to the captains quarters.
On the desk, placed gingerly in a cushioned box, was the thing that would make her journey possible. Her mother's Log Pose. She smiled, and opened the drawer. It was comforting, even though Natalia never planned on using it, to have an Eternal Pose set for Sauna Island. She smiled endearingly at it, then shut the drawer.
"Time to get back to work!" She proclaimed. "I need to start bracing the storage area of the ship, fixing up the kitchen, cleaning and then I'll let myself take a trial run around the island, then I can be gone forever!" After the proclamation, Natalia jumped and squealed in excitement. "So close! So close!"
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
"Malcom, she won't come back by your sheer force of will." Jackie said, patting her husband on the back. "Just give her time. She does this everyday, you know."
Malcom sighed. "I don't know what I've done wrong. I'm sure if her father could be here daily, like I can, the girl would be a well-mannered child! Instead, she wastes all her time God knows where, doing God knows what!"
"Relax. She'll be fine. She's a strong young girl, and she's got a whole island to explore. I'm sure she's just taking a nature walk." Jackie replied, optimistically.
Malcom smiled warmly at his wife. Every now and then, she reminded him exactly why he loved her so much, and why he put up with the stress of loving a child that wasn't his. He patted her hand. "I know, I know. Still, that girl's making my hair gray very early."
Jackie smiled, "Don't blame Natalia for your age."
Malcom frowned, but didn't reply to her tease, instead, looking over the vast ocean.
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
Natalia wiped her forehead. She'd gotten a lot done. The storage room now had half of a second layer, just in case the first decided to leak. She smiled at her work, and decided to take a short break.
Up on deck was a wreck. Tools were scattered everywhere, and dust had settled over everything. Natalia picked up a bucket and walked around, dropping the tools in as she went. Once that was done, she got the broom and went over the deck, making a neat pile in the corner. Before she could figure out what to do with that, a loud cry split the air.
"NAAAATAAAALIAAAA!"
I frowned and looked at the sun's position. It shouldn't be time for dinner, so maybe…? Was something wrong?
Natalia, driven by the thought of her home in flames and Malcom and Jackie burning, ran towards the house. Natalia made the ten minute trip in four, speeding to a stop beside Jackie. "Wha…? What…? What's wrong?" Natalia heaved.
Jackie put one hand on Natalia's cheek, framing her face. "Now look what you've gone and done. You're all covered in dirt, mud and sweating like mad! I don't think I've ever seen your face as red, either! Go up and take a shower. Put on your party dress. We have a special surprise at dinner."
Natalia raised an eyebrow. A special surprise? I wonder… Now excited, she ran up into the house, up the hallway, into her bedroom and back out with her party dress.
Her party dress wasn't something she liked to use often. It was pure white with a sea foam blue trim. It looked too… practiced. If you wear a party dress, it was Natalia's opinion that something had been planned. And planning takes all the spontaneity out of the picture, which therefore makes any evening perfectly dull.
However, if you're told to put on a party dress for a surprise, then who knows what's next. Either Natalia's friends in town had been invited for dinner or…
Natalia stood sharply, ignoring the water that was getting too hot. Oh no… if dad's coming home then I can't leave!
Natalia clenched her fists. She and her father had a lot of fights, and too many times when dad came close to discovering Adeline's Pride (which is what she'd named her ship). With a ship too near completion in the covered cove, dad would most likely see it on his way in. Natalia shook her head fiercely, sending water flying. "No, no, no, no, no, no! This can't be happening!"
However, even if he was coming, there was still a chance he wouldn't see Adeline's Pride and it always meant his office would be unlocked and open for Natalia to steal wanted posters.
She turned the shower off after washing up and dried herself, thinking about how many new pirates had appeared since last time her father had returned, and how many bounties had been raised. Natalia almost squealed in excitement, throwing on her party dress and brushing her hair. She secured it by tying two strands around her head in the back so her hair wouldn't fall in her face. She did this every time her father came home, and every time Malcom took a picture.
Maybe it's best he comes. I can take some pictures of everyone and take them with me… I'll miss Malcom and Jackie…
Natalia went to the dining room and found Malcom. He cooed over how beautiful she looked and how much she'd grown since she'd last worn the dress. She rolled her eyes, still smiling. "You say all this every time I wear the dress."
"Malcom!" Jackie called. "Come help set the table! Dinner's almost ready." Natalia smiled as the man hurried off, helping the maids set the table. They set four seats, two on one side, one on the other, and one at the head of the table, which she recognized as her father's normal seat.
Natalia crossed her fingers behind her back, closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Please, oh please," she whispered, "don't let him find Adeline's Pride, and don't let us fight tonight."
As the front door opened and shut, Natalia stiffened. The maids hastened, placing the food on the table and picking at the flowers one last time. Jackie and Malcom stood in front of their seats, and the maids aligned themselves against the wall behind them.
A deep husky voice boomed, "Where's my baby?"
Natalia turned around, unable to help the smile that spread across her face. Even though they fought, she couldn't help but love her father. "Hi, dad." She greeted, pretty much ruining all the formality Malcom and Jackie had worked to set up.
Natalia's father was dressed in his marine uniform, badges and honors hanging from his jacket. He looked as strong and as brave as ever, and despite her dreams, Natalia felt she'd always love him. She smiled wider at the thought of her dreams.
"Natalia! How are you?" Her father asked as he swept her into a hug. "You look beautiful! You've grown so much! How long has it been? …I think last time I was here it was Christmas. The marines don't let me take too many breaks, you know?" He sighed, "You look so gorgeous! I trust Jackie and Malcom are taking care of you properly?"
Natalia nodded. "As always. They've been looking after me well for the past three years."
Her father frowned, smoothing her red hair. "It's been hard." Was all he replied.
"Well enough of this reunion, I'm hungry!" Malcom said, trying to break the tense atmosphere the statement provided. "Let's eat."
Natalia and her father both smiled and took their seats.
"Mm! Jackie, this smells delightful!" Natalia's father exclaimed.
"Thank you, it's my pleasure to make it, Admiral Thompson. It's so rare for you to come home, we've missed you!" Jackie said, smiling.
Admiral Thompson wiped his mouth after taking a bite of Jackie's lamb. Natalia shuddered, hadn't I passed our only lamb in the pasture this morning? She placed the fork back on the plate and looked to her father.
"Well, I almost didn't get my week off at all! Unfortunately, the Straw Hat Pirates almost beat me here, but I think we put a pretty decent hole in their ship. I'm only upset that I didn't get the chance to fight Monkey D. Luffy myself!" Admiral Thompson laughed a booming laugh that made the chandelier shudder.
"Monkey D. Luffy?" Natalia asked. "You can't be serious! Isn't he the one… I think… Smoker is after?"
Admiral Thompson nodded proudly. "My crew was a bit timid at first but I ordered them to load the canon and in one perfectly aimed shot they were down!"
"You mean you actually sunk them?" She asked, "Sugoi!"
"Well, I, er…" He smiled, "I didn't actually see them go down and where we hit their ship it's possible they repaired the hole in time so they didn't sink, but I'm pretty sure."
Natalia almost revoked her amazement. Instead she nodded and turned her attention back to her food.
"But don't worry! My men have this place surrounded! There's no way any pirate ship will get in or out!" Admiral Thompson and Malcom both laughed heartily.
Natalia froze, her fork still in her mouth. That means I'll single handedly have to beat my father's men… Oh no! He'd never forgive me, and I don't even think it's possible! But if I don't get out here soon, Adeline's Pride…
Natalia made up her mind. Tonight, regardless of the work her ship needed, she'd leave. Tears came to Natalia's eyes, and she blinked them away furiously. I'll miss them so much!
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
"Oi! Usopp! Hurry, will you? We're going down!" Roronoa Zoro, the infamous ex pirate hunter, yelled.
"I'm going as fast as I can!" The self-proclaimed great captain yelled, "I can't go any faster without more help!"
Sanji, the wonderful, flirtatious cook from the Baratie, was holding boards in place as Usopp hammered them. Chopper, the reindeer doctor from Drum Island, handed them boards as needed. Luffy, the Going Merry's captain, swallowed impossibly large amounts of water, ran up the stairs and spat them out over the deck. At this rate, the Going Merry, was going down.
"We can't spare anymore help! Nami and I are trying to keep the ship afloat! Hurry up so you can get up here and help too!" Zoro yelled, a vein popping out of his forehead.
"Zoro!" Nami yelled. "Zoro! Come up here! I need you to help with the sail!"
"I'll do it!" Luffy yelled, mouth filled with water.
"No!" Sanji yelled, "Get the water out first! Let the shitty marimo do it!"
Zoro ran up the stairs and left the others to frantically run about. Suddenly, four hands popped out of the walls, securing the board Usopp was handling. Robin, the frightening archeologist, appeared. "Sanji, Chopper, Nami-chan needs you up on deck. A storm came out of nowhere. I can help Usopp."
The said crewmates nodded and ran up past Robin as her flowering arms sprouted to hand Usopp more boards. Once more, Luffy ran to gulp down more water and spew it out on deck.
On the deck, Nami, squinting to read the Log Pose, shouted out orders. Chopper, Zoro and Sanji, each scurried out to obey, while Luffy ran in and out of the leaking room.
After half an hour of frantic shuffling, the ship was patched, and the storm had calmed. The Straw Hat pirates were passed out on deck, each heaving. Even Sanji couldn't muster the energy needed to praise Nami-san's excellent navigating skills, or Robin-san's wonderfully useful gift.
Nami, the only one with energy remaining, pointed tiredly out in front of them. "An island." She announced. "We'll land there, stock up, work on the ship and relax for a while."
Luffy, revived by this information, jumped up to the ship's figurehead. He looked to the island shouting, "Sugoi! Let's go!"
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
That night, Natalia prepared to leave. She wrote a letter to her father, to Malcom and to Jackie. It had been hard to write, because halfway through it, she began crying, then sobbing. It was harder to leave than she'd thought. Tears blurred a few words, but Natalia was dead set in her decision to leave. She stood. "If I don't do this, I'll back out." She said, grabbing a dagger off her table. She cut a shallow 'x' over her heart, "Mom, I will fulfill your dream. And I will prove dad wrong."
Natalia smiled into the mirror, pressing a washcloth to her chest, hoping her new mark would scar. "Now I'll never forget!"
Natalia packed her suitcase, taking any clothes she liked, all her pictures, and some night clothes.
Natalia's next act made her feel so ashamed, but she had to. Everything in the fridge, she put in a bucket, along with bread and some fruits. She placed her note on the counter and looked at it for a moment. She took a deep breath, turned, and left.
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
"Oi, Luffy." Zoro said, looking out the window of the cabin. "There's another pirate ship coming in."
"So?" Luffy said, in such a manner to ensure his crew he was about to start whining. "I'm hungry! When's Sanji going to come back with the meat?"
Zoro sighed, looking away from the window. "I don't know, Luffy, give the shitty cook some time."
"Why can't we go outside?" Luffy asked, rolling on the floor of the cabins.
"Because Nami said not to." Zoro replied. "We're wanted men, if they see us, we could cause a panic."
"That's never stopped us before." Luffy mumbled, childishly. "Besides! Usopp, Chopper and Nami got to go!"
"But Robin's staying with us."
"I'm bored." Luffy stated bluntly.
Out by the ship, Sanji, Chopper, Nami and Usopp stood, looking at Sanji. Just a little ways ago they'd been walking smoothly with mild chatter, but now Sanji had stopped dead mid-sentence.
"Sanji-kun?" Nami asked. "What's wrong?"
He looked at the same pirate ship Zoro had pointed out to Luffy. He noticed a canon ball sized hole in the side and frowned. Some of the pirates were sneaking out, lining up with the obvious intent to steal the Going Merry. Sanji took a drag off his cigarette. "They can handle it. I don't want to damage the food I bought."
The others nodded their agreement. To their surprise, however, the swordsman and the captain flew out of the Going Merry. Luffy landed on his head, asleep, and Zoro on his stomach, his face in the dirt. Zoro grunted, lifted himself and looked up at the Going Merry which was now merrily going to sea.
The five conscious crew members gawked as their ship sailed in the night, pirates whooping and hollering at their steal. Nami kicked Luffy in the head. "Baka, baka, baka, baka! How could you allow this to happen? How are we going to get off this island? Baka!"
Robin, off to the side in the grass, cleared her throat. "There's a ship." She pointed into a covered cove across a small gap of water, where Adeline's Pride silently loomed in the moonlight.
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
When Natalia made it out of the house, she was met by the haunting sight of Adeline's Pride easing out to sea. Natalia gasped and screamed, "No!" She broke into a dead run, still grasping her clothes and supplies. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no!"
Her one and only chance was to run alongside Pride and jump on deck when she got the chance. Seeing as Natalia was a hammer, (i.e. a person who couldn't swim) she'd drown immediately after hitting the water, if that happened at all.
Natalia didn't think about drowning for more than a second. This ship… she had to… Natalia clenched her fists and screeched out another battle cry as she threw her things aboard Adeline's Pride.
On board, Zoro winced as something hard hit him in the head. He looked at the floor to see apples, oranges and other foods scattered beside him. He picked up an orange and looked at it questioningly. He grunted as a much heavier source knocked him to the ground.
When Natalia opened her eyes, she was grateful to see the first thing she saw was not water, and was in fact an orange. An orange clutched in the hand of a pirate she'd landed on.
Instinctively, her manners made her jump of and bow, repeating, "Gomen nasai!" When the pirate stood and dusted himself off she shook her head and slapped her forehead, then pointed at him accusingly. "Wait! I take that back! I'm not sorry- you're stealing my ship!"
Zoro blinked. Suddenly a redhead had fallen out of nowhere, knocked him down, then shouted apologies, then just started yelling. He looked around. "This is yours?"
Natalia was furious. "Yes this is my ship! Why…?" She couldn't find the words to describe this despicable act.
"Oi. Zoro. Who's that?" The captain asked, leaning backwards on a barrel he was sitting on to get a better look.
Natalia mechanically looked at him, then almost fell back into the water in recognition. "Straw Hat Luffy!" she screamed, "And you're…!" she pointed to Zoro, then the three swords, then back at the man's face.
Now sitting cross-legged on the deck, Zoro smirked.
"Roronoa Zoro!" Natalia was on the verge of tears. Why couldn't normal people hijack her ship? She could defend herself easily against them, but men with such devastating power? She wouldn't stand a chance.
"Oi! Luffy! Help out! We've got to catch up to the Going Merry! That was a gift from Kaya!" Usopp called. "We need to go faster! Faster!"
"A gift…?" Natalia repeated, curiously.
"Nami-swan! Robin-chwan!" Sanji called, swirling out of the kitchen with a tray of sweets. "I've prepared some desserts for our lovely ladies while we catch up to those thieves!"
"He's calling them thieves?" Natalia muttered under her breath with a scoff.
"What was that you shitty marim- ooh! Who's this lovely lady?" Sanji said, instantly in front of Natalia, clutching her hands.
"I'm Natalia. I own this ship." I replied. "Which, by the way, you've stolen."
"Stolen?" Sanji exclaimed, the heart in his eye breaking. "No, no, no, my dear, you've gotten it all wrong! We were simply borrowing this lovely vessel to retrieve our own."
"Mm hm." Natalia agreed, "Borrowed. Without asking. Which is, technically, stealing."
"M-minor technicality." Sanji whimpered, his lovey-dovey heart eye dissolving so he could see the murderous intent sparkling in Natalia's eyes.
"Gomen, Miss, but may we borrow this ship? At least long enough to recover our own?" Robin asked, politely.
Natalia sighed, "Fine. But don't expect any help from me."
Robin smiled. "Wouldn't dream of it."
"Ooooooooiiiiiiiiiiii!" Luffy yelled, enthusiastically. "There it is! There it is! The Going Merryyyyyyyy!"
The little chimp stood excitedly. Zoro stood as well, letting his hand come to rest on the hilt of his sword.
Natalia hoped the chills that paraded up and down her spine weren't too obvious.
Sanji joined Luffy and Zoro, focusing on the Going Merry instead of the redhead.
"Now, about our attack plan." Usopp said, trying to start a huddle. "I think we should try to be as inconspicuous as possible then-"
"!" Luffy yelled, drawing the attention of those that had stolen his ship. "Give us back our ship, you lousy-"
"Hey! Luffy! What do you think you're doing?" Usopp asked. "We had a plan!"
Natalia noticed the enemy pirates loading a cannon on the Going Merry. "H-Hey! Don't let that cannon hit this ship!"
She wasn't worried about sinking, that was the least of her problems. She was terrified of loosing Adeline's Pride. If she survived being knocked off the boat, that would be a fate worse than death.
Luffy nodded in understanding, just as Usopp screamed out in fear. "Oh no! That's my newest invention! The Usopp Smoke Bomb! It'll take a chunk out of a ship, then cover the immediate area with a thick cloud of smoke! They'll get away!"
"It doesn't matter!" Natalia cried. "They have nowhere to go but the next island, and if your ship is out of supplies they'll stop to stock up! As long as that cannon ball doesn't hit us, we can and will catch up!"
Usopp looked at Natalia, unsure.
She hit his head, "Just save my ship!"
It was then, everyone just decided to go along with Natalia's plan. Seeing as the Going Merry was out of supplies, it was extremely necessary that the pirates stop there. Either that, or they'd starve or dehydrate, leaving the Going Merry to float along helplessly. Natalia couldn't help but hope that'd be the case.
Luffy stretched his body abnormally to fill the space where the bomb should've hit.
Unfortunately for Natalia, Luffy was a moron.
The cannon ball blasted it's way into the side of the ship, easily breaking through the thin layer of boards protecting the side.
Tears pricked at Natalia's eyes, as smoke filled the air, easily blinding the ship it's passengers.
Luffy, knocked back by the impact, lay on his back, trying to see clearly again. "G-gomen…" he muttered.
Natalia, blinded by fury, clenched her fists, trying hard not to explode.
"Usopp will get your ship patched up right away, okay?" Nami said, seeing the anger plastered on the younger girl's face.
"Hey! Why do I have to?" Usopp whined.
"Because! It was your stupid smoke bomb that got us into this mess, and look! You've made her cry!" Nami yelled.
"No." Natalia said softly. "I'll fix the ship."
"B-but…" Nami said, defensively. It was the sharpshooter's fault in the first place.
"It's my ship. I built this with my own two hands. I can repair a hole. Just…" She shivered, pushing herself harder and harder not to grab Zoro's swords and slice someone's head off or to burst into sobs. "just go wait in the storage room. I'll call your navigator out when the smoke clears."
"B-but…!" Nami said, taking a step forward.
"Just go!" Natalia screamed. Her scream echoed around her, loud enough it surprised her when a secondary cannon wasn't fired.
The males rushed downstairs, and Robin followed calmly. Nami hesitated, holding her hand out as if trying to find a way to comfort the ship's owner.
"Just. Go." Natalia ordered, too depressed to scream it again.
Finally, Nami dropped her hand and gave Natalia a fleeting glance. What have we done?
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
The sound of Natalia making her repairs echoed below the deck. Usopp, out of boredom, had resumed putting up a second layer on the storage room. Luffy, bored out of his mind and unable to stand the stuffy air and lack of a breeze, took to bothering his shipmates.
"Oi. Oi, Zoro."
"What?"
"Wanna play a game?"
"No."
Dejected, Luffy turned to Sanji.
"Oi. Oi, Sanji."
"What do you want, you little pest?"
"I'm hungry. Isn't there any meat?"
"No. I'd have to cook it and that girl locked us in here."
Once more feeling disappointed, Luffy turned to his navigator.
"Oi. Oi, Nami."
"Huh." Nami replied. She didn't lift her head, and had her forehead resting on her knees.
"What's wrong?"
"I just feel so… guilty. Did you see the look on that poor girl's face?"
"You mean that evil look?" Usopp asked. "I've never been more scared in my life! That girl has a death glare to kill! And when she yelled for us to go…!"
"She's scary." Chopper concluded.
Robin looked out a porthole absentmindedly. "I think this ship means something very important to her. She looked especially bad when the cannon ball hit."
The door to the storage room swung open, and the subject of their conversation stepped in the room. "Navigator, the smoke's cleared out."
Nami nodded and hurried past Natalia to get started.
"You have a cook, don't you?" She asked, seeming distant and as if she didn't care.
"Yes!" Sanji said, hopping up, "I'm ready to cook you something wonderful!"
Ignoring this, Natalia continued. "Fix something for your crew. It's about time for breakfast. Don't break anything in the kitchen."
"Yes!" Sanji replied, "I'll make you the best meal you've ever-"
"It's not for me." Natalia said, silencing the flirtatious cook. "Just cook for your crew, let them eat, and leave me alone."
Sanji was shocked. This ship must've really meant something to put a person in this kind of state. He rolled up his sleeves and went off to find the kitchen as the sound of halfhearted hammering resumed.
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
"Hey…" A hand shook Natalia from her sleep.
"…h-huh?" She asked looking up as a certain blond chef shook her awake.
"I made you some lunch. I would've insisted upon you eating breakfast, but you were fast asleep by the time I finished! I'm sorry we couldn't help anymore, but everything's under control. Nami-swan said we're coming out of your island's stable climate, so we're on our way!" Sanji gave Natalia her plate with a grin. "I almost didn't wake you either. You looked so cute!"
Natalia stood, accepting the plate. She noticed she'd been moved from the edge of her construction site, where she'd been taking a break, and her work had been finished. With her free hand, she felt the smooth wood. You could hardly tell there'd been a hole at all! She smiled absently, but it disappeared as she realized just how horrid she'd been to these people. They'd repaired the damage they'd caused, apologized and she'd still treated them horribly!
Sanji leaned against the railing, looking up at the sky while taking a drag off a cigarette. "They don't blame you." He replied, as if reading Natalia's mind. "They figured there was some sort of history behind this ship, and came to the conclusion they would've done the same thing. Usopp finished your patchwork, which was actually pretty great."
Natalia smiled. She had gotten a bunch of books written by shipwrights to build and be able to take care of this ship. Also, she'd watched a few real shipwrights in their workplace, learning. "I don't think I could've done better." She admitted.
"He'd disagree." Sanji smiled. "Anyway- you'd better eat that before it gets cold- what's your name?"
"Natalia. Yours?"
"Sanji. Pleased to officially meet you, Natalia-swan." Sanji cooed, watching the delighted surprise pass Natalia's face as she ate the first bite.
"Sanji, this is delicious!" She exclaimed.
He grinned.
"Oi. The scary redhead is awake." Luffy said, craning his neck to see past Usopp, who'd been lecturing him on how the fishing bait was not food.
Usopp, upon hearing his captain's declaration, jumped and turned to face Natalia, making sure he was behind the captain's back for safety.
"Hey! That's Natalia-san to you, baka." Sanji said, "She is a lady, you know."
"Mm." Luffy acknowledged, nodding once.
"This moron is Luffy, he's annoying, but you'll get used to him." Sanji said, apparently deciding it was his job to introduce Natalia to everyone on the ship. "And hiding behind him is Usopp, the one who fixed the hole in your ship."
Natalia's eyes lit up with gratitude and recognition, "Thank you! You did an excellent job!"
"No problem, Natalia-san." Usopp said, sensing the chance to brag about things that never happened and that Natalia had overcome her anger. "Actually, when we went to the great land of…"
"Over here is the lazy marimo, Zoro." Sanji said, motioning carelessly to the sleeping swordsman as he walked by. "And this is our crew's doctor, Chopper. After that is the beautiful and intelligent archaeologist Robin-swan!" His tone changed once he mentioned a female, and Natalia began to piece together how this character would effect their voyage. "And our wonderful and beautiful navigator, Nami-swan!"
Nami smiled and waved at Natalia as she approached. "You look like you're in a much better mood today." She greeted. "I'm sorry about all the guys on deck, but once they realized you'd fallen asleep, they all had to come out. They get restless, you know?"
"It's fine. And I am feeling a lot better than I was yesterday… I'm sorry, it's just this ship really does mean a lot to me. I didn't mean to snap, or anything…" Natalia offered weakly, ashamed of her harsh actions the night before.
"It's fine. Do you know how long it takes to get to the next island?" Nami asked.
Natalia nodded. "Truthfully, I've only been there once in my life, but I remember it took four days; and that's when the winds and waves weren't in our favor. If the wind blows east, like it is now, the whole way, we should be fine."
"And if it doesn't?" Nami asked.
"It'll take a day or two more. If I remember correctly there's also a fast current somewhere around here, but I've only heard rumors about it, so I can't tell you much more." Natalia replied. "As long as you remember how random this sea is, everything should be fine."
Nami nodded.
"I'll go get you lovely ladies some refreshments." Sanji said, excusing himself.
Natalia smiled. Of all the people in the world, having the Straw Hat Pirates attempt to steal her vessel was a streak of luck. Anyone else would've thrown her overboard and laughingly watched her thrash until she drowned.
At least these pirates were kind.
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
"So, Natalia, you have to tell us." Nami declared at dinner. The day had been slow and peaceful, and Natalia had to admit, Nami and her had become quick friends. "What's the story behind this ship? The curiosity's been killing me all day!"
Most everyone nodded their heads in agreement, apparently, all wondering the same.
"Well, it's… kind of long and depressing." Natalia said. "I don't want to ruin the meal for anyone…"
"Oh please, Luffy ruins every meal we have by stealing food." Nami announced, at the same time as she slapped Luffy's wandering hands away from her food. "Besides, we're really interested in hearing it."
Most everyone nodded once more.
"O-okay then." Natalia said. She had to admit, sharing the story of her ship was a first. "Well, it all starts with my mother…"
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
Adeline was a beautiful woman, and she knew this well. She had long, wavy red hair that she kept tied back so the majority stayed out of her face. Her father, her father's father, her father's, father's father (and so on) had all been marines. She, however, was the oldest child of three. Her younger sister, Toby (really Tabitha) and her younger brother, Caleb.
As the oldest, Adeline had been expected to keep order between her siblings, but she'd grown up to be rebellious and wild. Instead of trying to help her parents fill their heads with manners and useful life lessons, she purposely went behind their backs to undo all their hard work. She had, at quite an early age, decided she was going to become a pirate, and no one could stop her.
One day, after a fiery argument with her father, Adeline was told one phrase that had changed her life forever.
"Adeline! It's time you faced reality! You're a girl! A girl! A female isn't fit to be a pirate. Females are fit for comfy lives where their fathers, then their husbands pamper them. Girls are delicate- not pirate material!"
For years, the quote brought her down, making her doubt the possibility of her dreams. Until one day, she met a young, handsome, kind and intelligent man with eyes that reflected the fire in his heart. Adeline knew immediately, this was the man for her. When he proposed, she said yes.
Said prince charming had a dream people doubted as well. He wanted to be a high-up in the marines, and somehow, this nursed Adeline's dreams of becoming a pirate back to health, and this caused conflict between the couple. Soon, her husband told her the same thing.
"Adeline, a woman cannot become a pirate! It's hopeless! Give it up!"
Still, she never lost hope. Years passed, and the man gave her children. As they grew, Adeline's husband was gone too often. While he was gone, she fed the children encouragements, especially her daughter, Natalia.
"You can do anything you set your heart to, Natalia! The world is full of possibilities! All it takes is a little push! You know, you could be the Pirate Queen one day."
These encouragements fed little Natalia, and she grew up rebellious, just as her mother had. But soon, tragedy struck. Adeline grew ill, but hid this from her children and husband. She paid some men in town to build her a ship, and not to tell her husband about it. When young Natalia had found out, she was shocked to tears.
"Mommy? Are you going somewhere?"
"Yep. Sorry, kiddo. I can't do it. I wish I could take you with me, but… I'm leaving tomorrow."
That night, Natalia had prayed to God all night that something- anything- would stop her mother from leaving her. The next morning, she wished she never had.
Adeline was found in her bed, dead. And Natalia blamed herself. After Adeline's funeral, Natalia's father found the ship and had it smashed to a million pieces. It was a bad example for Natalia, he claimed. And a bad reminder of the 'darker side' of his wife.
Natalia grew. The bigger she got, the more rebellious she grew.
"Mom, I will fulfill your dream. And I will prove dad wrong."
Natalia rebuilt the ship and renamed it Adeline's Pride, because that's what it had been. A symbol of her mother's pride. Something that her dad could never destroy. Natalia had also been told a fair amount of times that a girl could not become a pirate, and that she couldn't fulfill her mother's dream.
"Stupid girl! Don't you know an inherited dream never comes true?"
As her response, she'd laughed. She'd laughed so hard, tears came to her eyes. And with no other reply, she'd gone back to her room, snuck out, and began her work on Adeline's Pride.
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
The only dry eyes at the table were that of Robin, Zoro and Luffy. Robin had been paying close attention, but only smiled warmly. Zoro had fallen asleep after Luffy had stolen all of his food, and Luffy had been busy pillaging plates.
"That's such a sad story!" Usopp, Chopper and Sanji cried out. "Poor Natalia-chan/san/swan!"
"Gomen. I knew it would ruin the meal." Natalia said, looking down at her now-empty plate.
"It's okay, Natalia. I can see why you're so protective of this ship. It's a lot more forgivable knowing your reasons." Nami said, smiling.
Chopper, know taking things a little more seriously, asked, "Just what disease did your mother have?"
"She used to have a weak heart, I suppose." Natalia replied. "The heart attacks where small, and they grew, and grew until one huge one took her out."
Chopper nodded. "I see."
It was sad. Natalia's mother had been young too… the heart attack had occurred when her heart had gotten overexcited and over exerted itself. And Natalia had wished for her voyage to be stopped…
"So, anyways…" Usopp said, taking his fork, ready to dig into the meat that just wasn't on his plate anymore.
"Luffy!" Everyone on the ship yelled, waking Zoro up and startling him, causing him to fall off his chair, sitting on his butt, swords drawn.
Natalia, Nami and Luffy laughed.
Natalia was beginning to get the idea this would be a fun trip.
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
"Raise the sail!" Nami shouted. "Sanji! Turn sharp to the left! We're getting blown off course! Zoro, help Luffy!"
The ship was a blur of action as Luffy, Usopp, Zoro and Robin struggled to raise the sails as the winds threw about bits of driftwood, almost as if it were trying to poke holes in Natalia's sail. Lightening split the sky and thunder crashed. Rain pelted down, making the deck slick, and waves rocked the boat, causing a mass loss of balance for Chopper who was desperately attempting to assist Sanji. Nami and Natalia were the only ones even remotely still, Natalia grasping the rail and Nami squinting to see the Log Pose.
The crew had been trying to find a stable current, when a storm had erupted out of nowhere. Natalia knew it wouldn't be their fault if her ship was a little tattered, but as the self-proclaimed shipwright of Adeline's Pride, she was overtaken with worry. She could practically hear the boards in the storage room peeling off as the waves crashed against them. Nami nudged Natalia knowingly. "Don't worry. We've been through storms before."
Natalia smiled, as a gigantic wave rocked the ship roughly to the left. She instinctively looked to the left and shrieked. A huge sea serpent, probably disturbed from it's sleep by the storm, angrily thrashed, making violent waves.
Nami screamed, "Zoro! Do something!"
Unfortunately, all the fighters were a bit too busy to notice, and too far away to hear Nami scream. The sail had been a bit of patchwork, and not very good patchwork, but at the moment, it didn't feel like being tied up.
Letting her instinct take over, Natalia raised her palm to the creature and let an electric charge escape her palm, freezing the sea serpent. Just to be sure, Natalia let out a second blast, and watched it topple over and sink to the sea floor.
Nami let out a half terrified, half confused squeak.
Natalia looked back to her and asked, as if completely oblivious to her discomfort, "Are we still going the right way?"
Nami, remembering the Log Pose, looked to it and made a face. "Sanji! Hard right!" She looked at Natalia exasperated. "Stupid monster knocked us off course."
Natalia gave a smile and replied, "I'm going to go make sure the ship's holding together." She couldn't be sure, but at the moment, she wanted to claim this had to be the roughest maiden voyage in history.
In the storage room, she was shocked to find the second layer of boards had been finished, and it was all holding nicely. She put her hand to the boards and smiled, "Just a bit longer. We're almost to the island."
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
"So," Nami asked, sitting on deck, relaxing after the tiresome storm. "what was that?"
"'That?'" Natalia repeated, confused. "Please explain."
"I don't know how to." Nami replied. "That whole… sea serpent incident. You… did something."
"Oh, that!" Natalia said, realizing what the woman meant. "I ate the Shokku Shokku no Mi. I can make electricity. Like an eel."
Nami nodded. "That seems like a pretty good defense against sea monsters."
"Of course." Natalia grinned. "Water and electricity don't mix. They can't take it like some humans probably could."
"I see." Nami replied.
"LAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNDDDDD HOOOOOOOOOO!" Usopp yelled from the crow's nest.
Nami stood and rushed to the rail. "Impossible! The weather hasn't stabilized and it's only been three days!"
"Well, the weather's been kind of in our favor and this island is too small to influence the sea's weather around it. We call it Rain Island sometimes because of the unpredictable weather, and it rains practically twenty four seven." Natalia explained. "See? Just ahead you can see the rain."
"Oh…" Nami said, almost sounding deflated. "This sounds like such a dreary island."
"How are you going to catch the thief?" Natalia asked.
Before she knew it, Nami had called the whole crew over and was explaining how this trip was going to work.
"Okay, crew!" She called, "Remember, on this island we're not here to play."
Luffy, who'd been chanting, "Island, island, island, island, island, island," seemed a bit deflated by this news.
"We're here to catch the pirates who stole our ship! Now, we're going to split into two groups. Zoro, Chopper, Robin and I will search the right side of the island. Luffy, Sanji and Usopp will take the left."
"What about Natalia-chwan?" Sanji asked.
"Unless Natalia would like to help out, then this will be where we part ways." Nami replied, a tinge of sadness in her voice. It had been nice to have someone like Natalia on board.
"I'd like to help out." Natalia announced. "I don't think you need my help, but I'd still like to watch the guys who stole another's ship get beaten."
"Great!" Nami said. "Then Chopper can go with Luffy, Sanji and Usopp instead, and Natalia can come with Zoro, Robin and I!"
Sanji's heart-eye broke again. No doubt Nami-swan had this planned out so Sanji would have to put up with his idiotic male crew mates. But still, she was beautiful when she was devious!
"You guys ready?" Nami called.
"Yosh!" The crew replied.
"Good!" Nami answered. "Now let's get going!"
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
Rain Island had a great deal of interesting attractions. It was a very fashionable place. Many people were drawn to the mass amounts of designers. However, only one thing about the island really drew Natalia's attention.
There were rumors she'd heard about a certain thief that steals once a month on a full moon. She was known for her agility, flexibility and strength. She went by the name of 'Silhouette', because the last thing anyone saw before she disappeared was her silhouette against the full moon. It was intriguing, and once this whole Going Merry ordeal was over, Natalia planned on waiting for a full moon to see her.
"Okay! Now, we'll meet back here at dusk, okay?"
"Hai!"
"Let the search begin!"
"Yosh!"
The search began with Luffy wondering off in the wrong direction, Chopper and Usopp having to correct them. In Nami's group, they immediately took off, scoping the shore for a town.
"You're sure this is a civilized place?" Nami asked, looking about.
"Of course." Natalia replied. "I think we may be on the wrong side of the island, though. I've told you how small this place is, and there's only one town and a mass of trees behind it. Judging by this mass of trees, we could probably cut right through it and make it to the town quickly."
"Sounds like a plan to me." Robin said, looking into the woods.
"Then let's go." Nami said, smiling brightly.
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
"When I find whoever stole our ship, I'll beat him single handedly!" Usopp claimed. "I'll say, 'How dare you run off with our precious ship that Kaya so graciously bestowed upon us! Vile villain! I'll have your head for this!' Then, I'll attack him with so much force, he'll never know what hit him!"
"Really?" Luffy and Chopper asked, stars in their eyes.
"Of course, of course! After all, no one can beat the brave, the mighty, Captain Usopp!" Usopp declared.
"Oi, shut up. You're giving me a headache, shitty bastards." Sanji said. "Besides, I'm beginning to wonder if this place has a town at all. It looks deserted."
"Yeah, it really does." Chopper admitted. "I wonder if there was a town here and something horrible happened. Like a tsunami, or…"
"A giant wolverine jumped out of the woods and destroyed everything!" Usopp declared. "See? I've even found it's tracks! You know, this all reminds me of the time I…"
"Idiot! Those are your own footprints!" Sanji said, delivering an unnecessary kick to Usopp's head. "Now come on. The quicker we find that shitty thief, the sooner we can be reunited with Robin-chwan, Nami-swan and Natalia-chwan."
"And Zoro." Usopp added.
"Let's just get going again." Sanji sighed.
"Yosh!" Luffy said, speeding off ahead of the group.
"Wait, you moron! You'll get lost!" Sanji yelled, running after his moronic captain.
Usopp and Chopper exchanged a look and shrugged, then ran off after the two, screaming.
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
"These woods are so thick!" Nami exclaimed. "Hey, Zoro, couldn't you walk ahead of us and clear a path?"
Natalia looked to her left, then to her right, spotting only Robin. "Um, Nami… Zoro's gone."
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
"Damn! These woods are so thick the girls went and got themselves lost!" Zoro grunted, using one of his katana to slash through underbrush. Truthfully, he'd been lagging behind, not wanting in on any conversations and just itching to fight the bastard who started all this. After that it'd been all too easy for the direction-challenged male to ease off in another direction, loosing the girls for good.
After two or three good slices, Zoro made his way back to a clearing. Not just any clearing, either. The beach. Not just any spot on the beach either; the exact same spot they'd entered the woods. He could still see their footsteps in the sand, turning and disappearing in the woods. "Damn it!" He yelled, frustrated.
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
Not much time had passed before Luffy got bored. Then, of course, his boredom turned to hunger. Then his boredom induced hunger transformed into extreme loss of energy. And unfortunately, back to boredom, Luffy got curious. Forgetting all about bugging Sanji for a meal, Luffy decided maybe he could find something edible in the woods. Not giving it a second thought, he ran off.
Once he had run a little ways into the woods without seeing any food, Luffy slowed at a familiar voice.
"Damn it! Stupid, stupid, stupid! I can't take my eyes off them for one second before they get lost! Damn it!" Zoro's frustrated voice growled. Some brush fell away, and Luffy came face to face with his swordsman. "Luffy?"
"Hi, Zoro. Is there any meat around here?" Luffy asked, almost immediately.
"Eh, no." Zoro replied, a bead of sweat appearing on his forehead. "Where's Chopper? And Usopp? And that shitty cook?"
Luffy shrugged, loosing interest in his nakama's questions and once again scanning the immediate area for meat of any kind.
"So, basically, you're lost?" Zoro asked.
Luffy thought on it for a moment, then shrugged again.
Zoro sighed. "You might as well come with me then. I have to go find Robin, Nami and Natalia."
"What?" Luffy asked. "Did they you lost or something?"
Zoro's bead of sweat dropped a little, and Zoro released a sigh. "Come on, Luffy, let's try to find the town and we'll get you some meat."
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
"Well, well, it seems we can't loose sight of swordsman-san for a second without him getting lost." Robin said, chuckling to herself.
"Zoro!" Nami called. "Where'd you go?"
Natalia didn't know what to say. She figured all pirates had flawless sense of directions, but this…
"Nami, there's a break in the woods over there." Natalia said, noticing that they must be near the village.
"Great. Maybe by some miracle Zoro can find his way here. If not we'll just have to leave him." Nami said with a devilish smirk.
Through the trees, the sky had turned orange already, which seemed strange. How long had they been in the woods? But what seemed stranger, is that the island that always rained, was having completely calm weather. Only a few clouds hung listlessly in the sky.
"Okay, let's try to find Merry." Nami said. "Maybe they left her at the docks… if that's the case we can just steal it and pick up the others and be gone before a fight breaks out!"
Natalia was happy being in familiar territory, but she didn't want to push her freedom. After all, she was still in her father's domain, and technically, not free from his wrath.
"Aaaaaaahhhhhhhh!" A loud, slightly obnoxious cry sounded from the forest, unsettling many birds.
Nami gave a half relieved, half irritated sigh. "That's Luffy."
"How do you know?" Natalia asked, "Do you think he's close?"
Robin, as if to answer Natalia's question, simply put up five fingers, ticking off the seconds. On cue, once the fifth finger fell, Luffy flew out of the sky, landing on his face. Next was Zoro, landing in a simpler pose, flat on his back. The footprint on his chest was all it took to figure out what had happened.
"Shitty marimo! How dare you abandon those poor, defenseless women out in the woods!" Sanji roared, storming into the clearing. "And you! Captain! Where did you think you were going? What's wrong with you two- Aah! Nami-swan!" Immediately the fire in his eyes softened into a heart as he stepped on his captain's back to swoon over the navigator.
Natalia couldn't stop her eye from twitching. She wanted to make sure the two fallen crew mates were okay, but she figured that Zoro would be rather pissed by Sanji's actions.
In fact…
"You shitty cook! What the hell was that for?" Zoro screamed, jumping up, swords at the ready.
"You want to fight?" Sanji asked, a vein popping out of his forehead.
"Hell yeah I want to fight!" Zoro replied hastily before popping one katana in his mouth.
"Hey, hey, now's not the time." Nami said. "People are watching and you two need to conserve your energy for the guy who stole our ship."
Luffy rose and blinked several times, as if he hadn't a clue what was going on. "Are we in town? Can we eat now?"
Nami gave Luffy a fierce blow to the head. "Not until we get our ship back! Idiot!"
Natalia had seen enough. The fighting was slightly ridiculous and if this didn't stop, she'd leave the Straw Hat Pirates and do some exploring of her own. "Shouldn't we be worrying about the guy that stole your ship? We may need to get going, they might've left or they could be leaving."
"Eeeeehhh?" Luffy screeched.
Zoro stood, pulling his sword out of his sheath a little. Sanji stood as well, smirking. "Then, I guess we'll just have to stop them." They said, unanimously.
The Straw Hat Pirates entered Rain Town, ready to do some serious damage to whoever had stolen their ship.
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
Nami stood, her arms crossed, looking at the damage bestowed upon the poor Merry. The main sail with the Straw Hat Pirate's symbol had a huge black 'x' marked across it. The black pirate flag had bullet holes, ranging in size, scattered across it. Also, the rails in some places were knocked around and tattered. All in all, it was a terrible fate for a ship.
Natalia was enraged as well. As a shipwright, she believed every ship tells a story, and every ship deserves respect- as does the flag it bears. And some moronic, second-class pirates came along and did this to someone else's ship? It was despicable!
Needless to say, every pirate at the dock was ready to fight. And it wasn't long before the rats who did this to Merry came along, each talking hysterically and laughing. A fire blazing in their eyes, Usopp, Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, Chopper, Robin and Nami turned on them, weapons drawn.
"How dare you do this to the ship Kaya so graciously gave us!" Usopp yelled.
As if in agreement, Luffy and Zoro cracked their knuckles.
Natalia clenched her fists, vowing only to watch this fight.
After all, the Merry wasn't her ship. Therefore, this wasn't her fight.
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
Words couldn't describe what Natalia was seeing. Only a few even came close. Sanji kicked a few crewmates out to see with one deadly kick. Zoro, with one of his three swords, sliced holes in the left half. Of course, none of the poor unsuspecting thieves could even imagine surviving Luffy's rubber bazooka.
"Done already?" Sanji scoffed. "What a waste of time."
"Humph." Zoro replied, sheathing the one and only sword he'd used.
Luffy cracked his knuckles and almost in a whining manner added, "I expected more."
Natalia couldn't hold the flinch back the three faced the rest of the Straw Hat crew.
So this was the monstrous power of the Straw Hat Pirates?
"Natalia-chwan!" Sanji called. "Could we possibly be blessed with your presence for one more dinner?"
Natalia couldn't hold back her smile. Trying hard to ignore Sanji's bloodied pant leg, she nodded.
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
"A toast!" Nami called, her arm looped over Natalia's shoulder. "To Natalia! For the wondrous ride to Rain Island!"
Natalia grinned as the Straw Hat Pirates toasted her and her ship.
She had to yell over Usopp's one hundred and twenty seventh hymn boasting his bravery to Nami. "So you're leaving tomorrow, right?"
"Yeah!" Nami yelled back, laughing as Sanji kicked Usopp down from the crate.
"That's too bad! I was kind of hoping for another night with you guys!" Natalia admitted.
"We'll meet again, I'm sure of it!" Nami said, grinning. "Besides, I'm sure our brave captain had something to ask you!"
Natalia watched as Luffy swung from the mast, down in front of Natalia. He grinned wider than humanly possible and stated, "I want you to join our crew!"
Natalia smiled, honestly flattered by the offer. "I'm sorry!" She replied. "I can't. I've got my own dreams; besides! I've got to become the Pirate Queen! I don't want to work under the Pirate King." She said, sticking her tongue out at Luffy.
Luffy laughed loudly. "I figured as much!" With only that to say, he swung off again to Zoro and Sanji's sides.
Finally, the alcohol became too much, and the Straw Hat Pirates fell asleep, leaving only Natalia awake on board.
Or so she'd thought.
"You're leaving?" Zoro asked, catching her off guard.
Natalia jumped, almost loosing her grip on the rung of the ladder. Caught, she looked back over the deck to see Zoro leaning against a wall, his mug of rum still half full.
"I expected you to stay. At least to see us off tomorrow." Zoro said. "But, I suppose you'd want to get back to your ship, right?"
Natalia nodded, somewhat sadly. "The thought of someone stealing the Pride…" She shook her head. "I can't let that happen. I plan on staying on this island a little longer though. I've heard some thing's I want to check up on."
Zoro nodded. "So you're really serious about trying to become the Pirate Queen, eh?"
Natalia nodded firmly. "Of course. I've got three generations of pigheaded males to prove wrong."
Zoro hid a half grin. "Just know that you'll have this guy as competition." He jerked his thumb towards his captain, who was in the process of using a struggling Chopper as a pillow. "Next time we meet, things may not be as friendly."
Natalia shrugged. "That's okay. Sometimes you have to fight for your dreams."
Zoro smiled, then lifted his mug. "I'll drink to that."
Natalia smiled, nodded, and jumped down to the dock below.
~~oo~~O~~oo~~
Shit!
Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!
Natalia ran out of the captain quarters wildly, tugging her blue jean jacket on as she ran. She ignored the ladder leading down off her ship and jumped off the ship, landing smoothly on the dock, then stumbling as the ran towards the docks at a dead run. The trees snagged at her clothes as she desperately tried to make it to the docks in time.
How could she have woken up late on a day like this?
Running past buildings and shoving through crowds, Natalia finally jerked to a stop on the dock that just last night had held the Going Merry firmly in place. Still clearly in sight, the Merry was leaving, and leaving quickly. With a rush of whooping and hollering in the pouring rain, Natalia managed to catch Nami's eye, and wave the Straw Hat Pirates goodbye.
Over the noise of pouring rain, and the other people in the town, Natalia managed to get one message across.
"I'll see you again!"
oo~~O~~oo~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~oo~~O~~oo~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~oo~~O~~oo
Thank you for reading! Well? What'd you think? How was chapter one? Did I completely ruin the One Piece characters for you? I tried not to, I promise. Really, I do. Well, I'm feeling rather devious, so I'm not posting Chapter Two until some kind(or impatient) soul comes along and tells me too. Or if I get impatient waiting for reviews... and if that happens I'll cry. Honestly, I will. XD
Anyways, thanks again. Bye!