To Serve at his Command| Maid

Luffy was sat in the waiting room, left to herself to admire the exotic as well as beautiful paintings hanging about. The carpet beneath her shoes had a strange texture and pattern—obviously imported in from some far away land she had no idea about. The walls were a thick red, almost purple, and scattered down the way were electrical lamps—something she wasn't quite used to. Yes, she had seen electricity, but to own it was entirely something else.

Swallowing, she glanced towards the door to his office. Crocodile was inside and he had ordered her to wait outside, for what, she did not know.

This place is so nice…The mansion was by far the nicest home she ever visited, and it sent chills down her back to think she would now work there. Quickly shifting in her seat, she winced when it creaked under her.

"You must be the new help."

Glancing up, she was met with a pair of soft brown eyes and messy white hair. A woman with a sea of wrinkles stared back down at her, face bleak and eyes tired. "The young master informed me of your arrival."

Young master…? How old is this lady? Blinking, Luffy nodded before arising. "I, uh…"

Turning around, the woman bided for her to follow. "I requested help many months ago," the woman spoke as Luffy followed her down a hallway. "The young master is not one to bring in new help that often, so I must admit I'm surprised of your being here." The old woman paused before adding, "I will not tolerate failure."

"Yes, ma'am," Luffy quickly answered with a firm voice.

They came to a stairwell, one set going up, and another going down; they followed the path traveling downwards. "The servant quarters are located on the upper-basement floor. Since you are female—and being the only other one besides myself working at the mansion—you will receive your own room; however, this can always change if the young master wishes to hire more help." Another hallway appeared before them, this time darker and less attractive than any of the rooms located above. "You are allowed two meals a day—once in the morning, once at night. A quick afternoon snack may be yours if you so desire it."

"Yes, ma'am," Luffy commented as they approached a series of doors.

The old woman stopped before one door, hand gently resting on the doorknob. She turned back to eye Luffy. "You are here to serve the young master in whatever needs he has of you, as well as care for his mansion. I am the head maid—so you will also do any additional chores I give you. Each morning, you are expected to aid the master in dressing and serve him his breakfast, followed by fetching his morning paper and setting up his office for the day. After such, you are expected to clean what is needed cleaning, including the master's and other servant's clothing and bedsheets." The woman opened the door and allowed Luffy to enter.

It smelt old—a strange odor of dust hanging in the air. The walls were pale-white and bare, and the only furniture inside were a small bed, one desk, a wall-length mirror, and a chest. While it wasn't as friendly looking as that of Buggy's rooms, it was her own to do with.

"You will find cleaning supplies in a storage room south of here, near the end of the hallway. Mid-afternoon you will attend to the young master, assist him and complete any tasks given to you, including serving him his lunch. By evening, you are expected to help the cook set the dinner table and fetch the master a wine bottle from the cellar." The woman paused to take a breath, eyes searching Luffy's own. "While it is allowed, it is not proper to chit chat too much with the fellow help; work first, play later."

Luffy nodded. "Anything else, ma'am?"

The woman ran a hand through her hair, frail fingers flexing briefly. "You may refer to me as my name, Tsuru. But always refer to the young master by proper title."

Blinking, Luffy nodded once more. "Yes, ma'am—I mean, Tsuru, ma'am…"

"Your name?" Tsuru asked once before heading towards the door. When she reached the doorframe, she paused for an answer.

"It's Luffy, ma'am."

"Miss Luffy, if you would leave your belongings here and follow me?"

Quickly Luffy dumped her bag down upon the cot of a bed, following after the woman on silent feet. The pace the woman had was quite fast, surprising Luffy and causing her to smirk softly. Returning back to the stairwell, Tsuru lead them back up.

"You've already seen the young master's office doors, so I will introduce you to the other rooms you will occupy." Tsuru led her to the kitchen, much bigger than any Luffy ever stepped into, and it—embarrassedly so—caused her stomach to growl. She was always one to enjoy food.

Pretending not to have heard Luffy's gut crying out, Tsuru gestured to the kitchen appliances. "The cook will prepare the food here and you will carry it out to either the dining hall or to the master directly. You will also aid the cook in cleaning after each meal." Pausing, the woman nodded off towards the hallway. "Down the hall is the dining room."

Glancing back, Luffy nodded.

"Follow."

Soon after, Luffy was shown the laundry room, the guest rooms, the bathing rooms, the wine cellar, the social parlor, outside towards the garden, and an arrangement of other rooms. It took more than an hour for the tour of the mansion to finally end, and once it was as such, she was sent off to change into proper attire.

"It may not fit as well, but you can always adjust it in due time," Tsuru explained as Luffy pinched at the loose fabric of the maid uniform. It was shorter than she expected, ending a few inches above her knees and it came with a pair of stockings that reminded her of her clown uniform. "You will be provided with only two pairs; anything more will come out of your pay."

Nodding, Luffy went to look at the mirror. Her fingers picked at the collar, tugging it up to hide the now darker bruises on her neck. She caught Tsuru's gaze in the reflection and went red in the face.

It appeared that for a moment, Tsuru wanted to say something, but kept quiet. Finally, after a moment of silence, she spoke. "The young master wants you to start right away. He has requested that you tend to him in his office as of now…"

Turning around, Luffy forced a weak smile. "I will, ma'am."

"He gets in sour moods, do not anger him," Tsuru warned as Luffy slowly walked away, body timid and eyes darting around as she tried to remember the correct rout to the office. "And do try not to focus too much on the scars; he knows when you do."

And with that, Luffy was left alone in the hallway, the soft footsteps of Tsuru fading away as she took to the opposite direction. She wasn't too bad, she thought before finding the stairwell. Slowly, she walked upwards and continued down another hallway, towards that office.

Luffy could feel her heart pick up as she approached it, the smell of cigar smoke beginning to fill her nostrils. Hesitantly, she tapped her knuckles against the smooth oak door.

"Enter." His voice held a sense of confidence to it; loud yet in control.

Taking a deep breath, she pushed the heavy door open a tad bit before slipping in. The office was dark and cool in temperature, with the curtains drawn and it took her eyes a moment to adjust to the low lights. Once so, she found him facing away in his chair, towards the window behind him, even though it was covered by dark green drapes.

"Sir?" she weakly called out, confused as to what to do.

"Sit," he ordered but not turning to face her. A puff of smoke traveled away from the chair and evaporated against the ceiling.

There were not many chairs in his office, a pair off to the corner near a bookcase, and another across from his desk. She assumed he meant the latter and quickly took to it, making sure not to make too much noise as she sat down. Flattening down her skirt, she slowly glanced up, eyes searching his wide office chair.

"Has Tsuru shown you around?"

"Yes…sir," Luffy answered softly.

His chair turned, hard eyes finding hers. The coat he once sported was nowhere to be seen and Luffy couldn't help but take in his broad shoulders and the fine attire clothing him. "How old are you?" The question caught her off guard, but after a moment of thinking it over, she decided it wasn't too odd of a question.

"Seventeen, sir," she answered after avoiding his probing stare. He made her feel so small with those eyes of his.

Crocodile inhaled another breath of his cigar before resting his arm across the armrest. He sat there, watching her for what seemed to be an eternity, and it wasn't until she risked glancing up that he spoke again. "Was that shack you led me to today your family's estate?"

Blinking twice, Luffy shook her head no. "No, my family is in another city."

He cocked a thin brow, obviously interested in her answer. "Then was that your estate?"

Again, she shook her head no. "It was my employer's…my old employer's house." Glancing down at her hands, she continued. "He allowed us to stay there as long as we made him coin."

"A thieves' den, is it?" Crocodile chuckled softly at his own remark before adding, "And how did a girl of merely seventeen end up in such an establishment? Are you a runaway?" He took another inhale of his cigar.

She met his gaze face on. "I suppose I ended up there as I did here: by chance, sir. One of the leaders of the…group found me and offered me work. And from there…"

Crocodile narrowed his stare as he leaned back in chair, fingers rolling the cigar playfully. He took a moment to process the information. "I can only imagine the sort of things you've experienced since running away."

"I didn't, sir," Luffy corrected him. "I left home merely for work, to…"

"To what?"

Luffy bit down on her bottom lip, unsure if she should continue on. I don't want to drop all of my family's struggles on his desk like this…"Just for work, sir," she answered.

Tapping his fingers across the armrest once, he brought the cigar to his mouth and left it there. "Get up."

Widening her stare, Luffy pushed herself up and kept her arms folded timidly under her bust. "Sir?"

He gestured to the spot next to his chair. "Come closer."

For a mere second, she kept sill, confused as to what he meant, but when he nodded off to the spot once more, she slowly took those few steps towards him.

His eyes left her face and traveled down. "Turn around," he ordered.

She did as such, slowly and unsure of herself. When she returned back to facing him, she watched a look of annoyance cross his face briefly.

"The uniform is loose on you," he said dully. "When my tailor comes by in a week or so, be sure to ask for measurements to tighten it up." His hand found its way to her outfit, fingers pulling at a piece of it. "You're thin," he murmured, more to himself, and for a moment, his eyes found hers, smirk glued on.

Luffy found no words to respond with.

His hand lingered on her then, fingers slowly tracing the waist trim of the uniform. His gaze hardened but remained focus on the bottom portion of her dress. "Tell me," he whispered coolly, never meeting her wide stare, "did those thieves have you do anything else besides rob people?"

She didn't understand. What…what does he mean? "I don't under—"

His gaze shot up to hers, narrow yet demanding. "I can only imagine what scandalous things you had to do in order to survive…was that the case, little thief?"

Her cheeks grew on fire then. "N-no, sir," she muttered out, pulling back but stopping when he took a grip of her dress, keeping her still. "That…nothing like that happened." The words poured out of her as her face grew in heat. "I…I've never…" She didn't know what else to say and she found her body tensing up from the sheer embarrassment of his questions.

Why is he asking such indecent questions? What…what does he gain from such information?

Crocodile blew out some smoke towards her direction and she struggled to breathe it in. And he drew her in towards his face, eyes mere inches away from her own. "You must excuse me for being so blunt, but I will not have another man's whore living in my home." His hand slid up her body, gripping her jawline and holding her still when she began to pull away. "Is that the case?" he murmured softly, almost intimately.

Frowning weakly, she shook her head. "No…no, sir," she whispered as fear took over. She had never been this close to a man before, and never had she been handled as such.

He ran a thumb across her bottom lip and she couldn't help but turn an even darker shade of red. Upon instinct, her hands shot up to grab his wrist, but he was stronger and kept his hold on her true. "Never?" he asked, ignoring her attempts to remove his hand from her face. A smile came to him. "That's good to know." He pulled his hand away, leaning back in that chair of his, and breathing in more of his cigar.

With sweaty palms, she touched her jawline before glancing back over at him, utter fear written across her face.

"Don't look so shocked," he muttered before turning to face his desk. He slowly picked up a pen and began to jot something down upon a parchment. "I want you to go fetch me my lunch, and a glass of red wine. I'll be dining in my office today."

And just like that, he acted as if what just happened actually didn't just happen. Standing there, she watched the muscles in his arm flex as he wrote, heart still pounding hard.

"You can't do your chores if you just stand there all day," he informed her coldly. "I've requested something from you and I don't like asking twice."

Nodding once, Luffy quickly left, slipping through the doors quietly. She found herself resting upon the back of the doors, trying her best to calm her breathing and shaky hands.

Is that normal for maids? She wondered, fluttering her eyes shut. Coming from a poor family meant they could never afford servants, so she never knew proper interactions between servant and master. But is that…was that proper? She cocked her head back, eyes searching the smooth door behind her.

Licking her bottom lip, she shuttered at the feel of him running his thumb across it. Although, she knew standing there like that wouldn't serve her best. He wants his food and I'm afraid to keep him waiting.

And yes, for the first time in her young life, she was truly afraid of her employer. While Buggy was grouchy, he never used forced…never touched me like that…Her brows arched at the thought of her life just a mere few hours prior. Why did things go the way they did?

She contemplated running back home…where Buggy, Shanks, and the rest of the group are waiting for me. I can pretend all of this didn't happen…but…But there was that looming threat of Crocodile reporting her in. And because of being the naïve child she was, she led him straight to Buggy's house.

Even if I do run away, he would find me and maybe even report Buggy and the rest…Luffy shook her head, deciding that she needed to protect them.

With that, she pushed herself straight up and went for the kitchen.


"Oi, oi!" The cook was a chipper young man, with blonde hair and a slender frame. Luffy timidly entered the kitchen, watching as he rushed from one counter to the next. He had his back to her, but for some reason, he knew she was there. "You the new help?"

"Yes," she softly answered, stiffening when he whipped around, wide eyes growing ever wider.

"O!" he gasped out, dropping a spatula into a bowl of cream. "Tsuru didn't say anything about a cute girl!"

Luffy blinked once. "Who? Where?"

The cook shook his head, offering her a soft smile. "You," he answered and in a flash, he was by her side, hand taking her own. She tried to rip it away from him, but his tender fingers kept it between his own. "Allow me to introduce myself: I'm Sanji, the one and only chef here."

Finally prying her hand back, she nodded weakly. "Uh, hello," she said softly as she made sure to take a step away from the overly friendly cook. "I'm Luffy, the new—"

"The new maid," he finished for her, excited. "Tsuru mentioned you earlier, but I thought you'd just be another old woman—not to say an older woman isn't something to behold as an item of beauty."

Cocking a brow, Luffy slowly said, "Oh, well…the master, he requested his lunch." Peeking around the chef's shoulder, she glanced at the wide arrange of small dishes, ranging from fresh greens and simmering meats.

Pushing past her gently, Sanji pointed to the table, a proud look in his eyes. "Today's lunch consists of a lean slice of roast beef—soaked in a creamy vegetable gravy substance." Quickly he moved over to the vegetables. "Served with cabbage salad, peas, and cauliflower. And I prepared vanilla wafers as a desert."

"It looks…amazing," Luffy admitted, eyes widening at the glorious feast before her. To think if I ate like this every day…Shaking her head clear, she returned her stare to the cook. "You're talented."

He smiled at that before moving on. "For a drink, I prepared a strong black coffee—"

Luffy interrupted him. "He requested red wine."

Sanji, pausing, widened his stare ever slightly, but eventually nodded. "Yes, red wine," he muttered as he crossed over to a cabinet. "Yes, we have some here…" Pulling out a glass, he filled it to the rim and for a second, he sent her a strange look. "Sir Crocodile doesn't typically start drinking wine this early, but I suppose…"

Cocking her head, Luffy awaited for him to finish his sentence, but he failed to do so. Instead, all he did was shake his head softly and offer her a small smile.

"Here, I'll place these on a platter for you to carry to the master," Sanji stated softly. "And once he sends you back, you can dine on the leftovers."

Luffy's heart pounded, fingers twitching. "Really?" she practically gushed out, eyes darting back at the meal upon the kitchen counter. She could already taste the roast beef melting in her mouth. "That would be great," she exclaimed as she moved over to the platter, gently picking it up as to not spill the wine. "I'll be back real soon," she added before heading out.

Sanji said something in response, but she paid him no attention. All she could focus on was the food and how wonderful it was going to be to pig out. Maybe working here won't be that bad? She smiled as she continued down the hallway. Yeah, Crocodile seems a bit odd and rather aggressive, but this food…it's amazingly beautiful.

More determined than ever, she approached the office doors once more, shifting her weight so she could safely knock on the doors. "Sir," she called out, "your food." Upon instinct, her fingers reached out for the doorknob, stopping just before she opened the door. When he finally gave command for her to enter, she pulled it fully open and quickly scurried back inside.

"The chef prepared roast beef for your dining pleasures today, sir," she softly explained as she approached the middle of the office. Cocking her head, she watched as Crocodile kept his gaze down upon the papers in front of him.

"Place it over there," Crocodile quietly ordered, not looking up at her. He gestured at a table in the corner of the office with his hand before returning back to writing.

Turning around, she took to setting the table, placing the main course of beef in the middle with the glass of wine beside it. Behind such, she placed the plates of vegetables and creamy gravy. The smells were intoxicating and it made her stomach protest out, quietly though.

She never even noticed his tall presence behind her. "Stand over there and wait," his dull voice order, startling her. She quickly scooted over, watching as he took to the table chair, one hand reaching out for the wine and sipping it slowly. A smile played with the corner of his lip after his sip.

Chewing on her lip, she hesitantly made her way to the spot he told her to stand, which happened to be a mere three feet behind him. Luffy kept her hands folded together over her chest, wide eyes watching as he began to eat.

"Stand with your arms to your sides," he ordered without even looking back at her.

Blinking, she dropped said arms, frowning at the awkward stance. It felt odd for her to remove her hands from her front; they acted as guards in a sense against the rest of the world, but hanging them to her sides left her defenseless in a way.

"You never explained as to why you left home to find work," he asked suddenly but with that voice still calm and under control.

She watched as he took a bite of the roast beef, pausing afterwards and slightly cocking his head back to imply he was waiting for an answer. Upon instinct, she brought her hands back upwards to fiddle her fingers together.

"Keep them at your sides," he ordered once more, his voice growing in agitation. "I've already told you this once."

"Oh, yes…sir," she mumbled as her hands fell back down. Licking her lips, she tried to find a way to answer his question without giving away too much personal information, which proved to be a difficult task. "I just felt it was time I ventured out to find work, sir," she finally answered, and while it wasn't exactly true, it wasn't exactly a complete lie.

Crocodile paused to take another sip, leaving the rim of the glass to linger at his lips. Once finished, he placed it down and she could see the corner of his lips tug up into a smirk. "You're holding something back, little thief," he began before turning in his seat to meet her eyes. "I'll have you know I'm not a trusting man and it makes me quite suspicious when my servants aren't forthcoming with information."

"…" She just stood there, unsure of how to respond.

"Now I'll ask once more—something you should already know is a task I don't enjoy doing—why did you leave the safety of your home?" His eyes narrowed, piercing hers and digging for any secrets she had locked away. His arm hung heavy over the back of the chair, fingers tapping softly against the wood.

Her throat grew dry, body tense. She didn't want to speak but the way he looked at her peeled her skin back, revealing her bare bones and tender flesh. Frowning, she glanced down for fear of that heavy stare of his.

Crocodile chuckled then, shaking his head once before turning back to return to his meal. "I don't understand why you're being so difficult," he said as he brought a bite of cauliflower to his lips. "If you think casting your gaze aside like that is going to get you off the hook, you have another thing coming."

"…"

"Bashful little maids are only cute in certain situations, and this is not one of them, little thief. Choose your path wisely when dealing with me."

Her eyes fluttered shut and her mouth slowly parted. "I left home because my family is in need of money," she started, voice pitchy. Her brother's voice rang in her head. You can't tell anybody this, Luffy, swear it. Nobody can know. "We're…" She trailed off, embarrassed of admitting it.

"Poor?" he finished for her after finishing another bite of food. "Is that it?" He smirked, turning back to face her. "All this trouble over something so minimal?"

"Poor…?" she repeated softly, searching his gaze. While he was quite true on that aspect of her life, she wasn't very embarrassed over it. No, it was her family's—or more so, Ace's—dark secret that she was afraid of speaking of, but if he thought her issue only had to do with mere status…She nodded then, making sure to pout her lips. "Yes," she murmured softly. "That's it."

Let him think that than actually reveal Ace's secrets…

Crocodile laughed—louder than before—at that moment, shaking his head as he went to finish the rest of his wine. "You are too overdramatic," he said then, sniffing a little. "An issue such as that didn't deserve the amount of resistance you gave."

Luffy casted her gaze aside, glancing towards his bookshelf. "I'm sorry for doing as such, sir," she mumbled.

"Look at me," Crocodile ordered and her eyes darted to his. "From now on, you will be forthcoming with any information I ask of you. No more of this dodging around the questions crap you like to pull—I will not tolerate it anymore." He paused, finger slowly tracing the rim of his empty wine glass. "My servants should show the upmost loyalty to their master," he explained. "Anything less will result in severe punishment. Am I understood?" He smiled.

Widening her stare, Luffy only nodded yes.

"Wonderful then," he exclaimed, arising from his seat and placing the wine glass down upon the platter. "You can take this back now and tend to the kitchen. You're dismissed."

Blinking, Luffy quickly gathered up the items and left, scurrying down the hallway and straight for the kitchen.

For a moment, she had lost all apatite but at the same time, she felt giddy for…for tricking him. Not exactly, though, but to some extent. Luffy smiled as she continued down the hallway towards the kitchen. I didn't reveal Ace's secrets…I protected him, for another day. And for Luffy, that meant she won.


To be continued…


Next time: Meeting the rest of the servants and dealing with more Crocodile.


Thank you so much for reading!

Stardustadventurer & IMadeThisUp & Son of Whitebeard: Thank you so much for reviewing and leaving the wonderful compliments! I'm so glad you're enjoying it so far! : D

Cnerriza: Here's chapter two! :D