Cana threw her fists up in the air with a broad smile, "Hells yeah!" She whooped before jamming a hand down on her hip and thrusting a finger towards Anders' face, "First mate acquired!" She declared.
Anders' brow twitched, "First?" He echoed in mild agitation. Anders wasn't sure he'd be able to put up with the capricious girl by himself on a space so confining as a boat.
Cana grinned, "That's right, Julie! It's just you and me now!" She chimed as she tossed a soft, feather-like punch into Anders' stomach and reached up, standing on her toes to tousle the doctor's hair. "I've only got three rules: What the captain says goes, work is forbidden at the dinner table, and no crying on the boat."
Cana slapped Anders on the back playfully, "Pack your bags, spider boy, you're a Mythos now! " Cana called as she tromped past Anders, only to spin on her heels and quirk a brow as she poked a finger at his back, "By the way, your shirt's a bit…" Cana twirled her finger around with pursed lips, "…ragged. You might wanna fix that before we head back- I can't have people thinking I've begun recruiting hobos."
Anders deadpanned as he glowered at the girl who bounced on her toes and tugged at the bottom of Anders' way too big long white button up which covered her person, "I'd offer you mine- but you know how it is -what with modesty and all." Cana said with a shrug as she smirked slyly before turning and flouncing back inside.
Anders scowled at the girl's back, already beginning to regret his decision as he padded after her. Anders followed the capricious girl inside and watched in irritation as she plopped herself down on the couch, tossing her arm over the back of it as she crossed her legs and tipped up the brim of her hat, "Take your time getting all your crap together- Seeing as I've been gone for three days and my advisor is already going to murder my ass, I'm not really in any rush to return." Cana said with a grin.
Anders frowned at the teen as he loosened his tie and pulled it off his neck, "I thought you said I was the first member of your crew?" He asked blandly as he shrugged off the tattered remains of his shirt and bunched it up before tossing the rags in to a nearby trash bin.
Cana frowned as she bounced her foot lightly, "Technically speaking, yes. Zoro's only temporary- he insists that he's only sticking around until Loguetown, but until then, he's promised to act as my advisor- It's pretty complicated."
Anders rolled his eyes as he headed for the main hallway, "…He's probably gotten tired of you…" He grumbled before tromping down the hall way and disappearing behind a door, leaving Cana to roll her eyes at his back with a smirk.
It was a half an hour before Anders returned to the living room, a black pack over his back and a matching briefcase clutched in his hand, a freshly lit cigarette dangling loosely from his lips. Cana brought her arms up over her head and stretched as she stood from the couch. Pushing her hat down on her head, the teen flounced over to Anders and yanked the briefcase from his hand, ignoring the pointed glare which he sent her as she spun around on her heels and began to march towards the door, "I'm gonna need something to cover my head with when we get back~" Cana hummed, swinging the case back and forth as she stepped through the splintered doorway.
Anders frowned sourly and padded after the girl, "How long have you been a pirate?" he asked absently as they exited the clearing, looking over his shoulder in a silent goodbye.
Cana glanced back at him as she pushed aside a large curtain of vines, "A few weeks." She hummed.
Ander sighed in exasperation, "I'm going to pretend you said months."
Cana grinned, "Whatever helps you sleep at night, spider boy."
"-Don't call me that." Anders stated crossly.
Cana smirked at the man slyly, "I'm the Captain, I do what I want." She said haughtily, ignoring the way the doctor glared at the back of her head.
"Owowowowowow-!" Cana squealed, "Cease murder! Cease murder!" Cana cried, attempting to avoid the wrath of the furious ex-supernova, gripping Anders' briefcase over her head. Though once he realized the jeopardy that his medical supplies were in, the doctor himself intervened, quickly plucking the case away.
Cana shot Anders an exaggerated look of shock at his apparent betrayal before her attention shifted back over to the dodging of the angry swordsman. "Ow-! I said I was sorry~" Cana whined, ducking behind her deadpan first made in hopes of escaping Zoro's wrath.
Eyes clenched shut, Cana brought her hands up to grip Anders' shoulders and push him towards the grouchy swordsman, "See, look- I even brought a peace offering!" She squealed.
Zoro's furrowed brows relaxed and his mouth thinned into a line as he stared at the doctor, only now seeming to notice that he was even there, "-Who the hell is this?" He asked vaguely.
Cana stepped out from behind the arachnid man and clapped a hand over his shoulder, leading Anders to glower at her silently, "This is Jules-"
With a disgruntled sigh, and a yelp from his captain, Anders brought his arm up, knocking Cana's hand from his shoulder before bringing it back down in a circular motion and he gripping the girl's wrist and trusting it behind her back, "Anders- Julian Anders." Anders introduced himself as his Captain flailed in his grip.
"Owowowow- let go, you're gonna break my wrist-!" Cana pleaded as she brought her free hand up to yank violently at a lock of hair which hung out of Ander's ponytail to frame his face, jerking his head downwards as the man in question scowled and grit his teeth.
Anders spoke in a gruff, angry, tone, "Don't call me Jules."
Cana tugged harder at the strand, forcing Anders to lean down lower, "I'm the captain- I do what I want." She said firmly with a slight wince. "As captain, I order you to let me go." She stated childishly.
Zoro watched the exchange and waited for a moment before sighing and drawing one of his blades, pointing the tip of it at the white haired doctor's head, "You wouldn't disobey a direct order, would you?" He asked coolly.
Anders eyes flickered to the tip of the blade, then to its holder, before they darted back to Cana. With a sigh, he released the girl's wrist, who in turn relinquished her grip on his hair. The two silently leered at each other as Zoro looked Anders up and down, sword propped up over his shoulder.
Finally Zoro sighed and sheathed his sword, "Fine then," he grunted, "But I'm not carrying her back onto the boat."
"Where did you say you got this boat again?" Anders asked after Cana had - with much instruction from Zoro - set sail from the island.
Cana scratched at her cheek lightly, "It was a gift." she replied vaguely as she shrugged her shoulders back.
"Quite an extravagant gift- care to share of its origin?" Anders asked, eyes narrowing in detection of Cana's secrecy.
Cana twirled a finger around in her hair, "It was a going away present from my dad- if I was going to be setting off no matter what he had to say about it, I suppose he wanted me to have only the best." It wasn't a complete lie, but it still set a sour feeling in Cana's gut- she didn't like the idea of hiding who she was from her crew or the soon to be. She also wasn't so naïve as to think that nobody would ever find out- especially if she turned out to be good at this whole pirating thing.
Cana could see that Anders didn't quite believe her, but accepted the answer as he bobbed his head lightly before plucking his cigarette from his lips and exhaling, "I trust a ship with 'only the best' has a more than substantial infirmary?" He asked, giving the briefcase in his hand a small bounce for effect.
Cana perked up at his question, "Yeah, and as my first mate you've also got your own quarters adjacent to mine- pretty good deal, right?"
Anders shrugged with a sigh, "I'll likely spend most of my time in the infirmary anyways."
Cana rolled her eyes as she snagged the doctor's wrist, "This will be a lot more fun for the both of us if you stop going out of your way to be grumpy," she pouted, "C'mon- I'll show you where you can start setting up, though it won't be anything too fancy until we get some more money- right now the equipment in merely standard protocol. I suspect whomever built the Legacy Childe didn't have much knowledge beyond the realm of construction and engineering." Cana explained as she lead Anders down below the deck.
"I'll make due- anything is better than what I've been working with prior to this." Anders stated simply as Cana deposited him inside the infirmary. True to his suspicions, the infirmary was a great deal better than what he'd previously had to work with- technology on Trellis hadn't exactly been the most advanced.
It was a moderately sized room that gave off a vibe opposite to the cold tile and drab grey of his workspace back home- with wooden walls and floors, and various bits of cream and hazelnut tapestry over the walls and port hole windows, the room felt warm and homely. It wasn't something Anders was particularly fond of, be he supposed he would soon grow accustomed to it.
Cana bounced lightly on the balls of her feet before retreating backwards towards the door, "I'll just leave you to unpacking- your quarters are just across the hall…" She informed him awkwardly, "-Dinner is served at nine above deck, but we don't have a cook yet so it's nothing fancy… I suppose you're free to wander around and explore until then." She stated as she pushed backwards against the door before slipping out into the hall and sauntering away.
Anders sighed with a shrug as his captain dismissed herself, leaving him alone in his new workspace. It wasn't too bad, he supposed. The main infirmary space seemed to be more of a sick bay than anything, adorned with plush cots and a small sitting area, while further in was tucked a lab and office space or sorts with plenty room to add things in. Against the left wall was a pair of white double doors, a sign above them reading "operating room."
With a sigh, Anders crossed the room and set his briefcase down atop the desk- his desk- before dropping his bag down on the floor beside it. Popping open the case, Anders began to unpack his more prominent effects: a black leather-bound journal containing his findings on various toxins and their antidotes, a framed photograph of the woman who taught him medicine, a folder with all his old patient files, various packets of seeds so that he might regrow some of the flora native to Trellis, vials of anti-venom, and a book documenting the growth patterns of different species of spiders to name a few.
By the time Anders had stocked the infirmary of all of his belongings the only thing which remained to be placed in his quarters was a change of clothes, his reading glasses, and an additional ash tray. -He wasn't really one for sentimentality or personal effects.
Tonight a full moon hung high in the silver-peppered sky above the Childe, which sat quietly amongst the docile waves which lapped against its hull. Cana was in the kitchen preparing dinner, whist Anders, who'd since returned to the deck, sat casually at one of the tables, his notes spread over the smooth wood as he rolled pen between his fingers in contemplation. Zoro laid, supposedly napping, on the hammock beneath the cherry tree, ignoring Anders' occasional glances.
Anders looked up from his notes tediously as the door to the kitchen was pushed open and his captain slid out between the crack, a plate on each palm, while a slightly larger platter was balanced meticulously atop her head.
Cana approached with careful, languid movements and slid the plates on her palms down opposite to Anders, not even blinking as the platter atop her hat was plucked off by the passing swordsman who promptly wandered off to devour his meal in solitude.
Cana nudged a plate of grilled fish and rice towards Anders before dropping her chin down in her palm, "What'cha doin'?" she asked casually.
"Work." Anders replied promptly.
Cana rolled her eyes as she pushed some food around on her plate, "C'mon, Jules, it's not like you've got any paperwork to file or anything- what's with all this stuff?"
Anders sighed bitterly, "Research."
"-unto what?" Cana asked smugly around a bite of fish.
Anders glanced up at the teen before returning his focus to his so-called work, "-The Kumo Kumo No Mi."
"Your devil fruit?" Cana questioned with a quirked brow and a vague smile.
"Mnn." Anders hummed dismissively, only to scowl as a hand was slapped down over his paperwork, eyes widening as another hand gripped his chin and jerked his face upwards, forcing him to meet the steady gaze of his captain.
"Dinner time is for dinner- work goes away until after." She stated with a sweet smile before dropping his chin, collecting his papers together, and swapping them out for his plate.
Anders opened his mouth to protest but was cut off by his captain shoving a forkful of food into his mouth, "Whatever you want to know about your devil fruit will come in due time, it's not something to be solved whist pouring over papers, but something to be learned with experience and practice." She chided before grinning, "-You're not just gonna have some spidery catharsis at the dinner table."
- Notes -
Sorry that it ends a bit abruptly, but I sort of just wanted to wrap it up so that I could move onto the next chapter in which I'll hopefully get some more of Anders' character developed, or at the very least explained. (Considering he isn't just joining so that he can be dragged around the world by his ever so capricious captain)
I appreciate the support that this story has been given so far and send my thanks to those of you who have been sharing your thoughts on it with me!
