Chapter 9: The Clouds Part

Roland!

Amaya sat bolt upright in the bed as thunder cracked in the distance. She was in the med bay. The room was dark as was the sky outside, though if night had fallen or if it was simply the shadow of the storm, she couldn't tell. Something shifted in the corner of her vision.

"Maya? It's okay, I'm here."

"Roland," she sighed in relief. "I thought… I saw you—"

The bed dipped as he sat on the edge. It felt good to have him close again. He fiddled with the gas lamp on the nightstand until a warm yellow light illuminated the space. Amaya hastily scrubbed the tears from her cheeks, but too late—he had already seen them.

"Are those tears for me?" he teased.

"I thought you weren't coming back…"

Roland sighed and wrapped her in a tight bear hug. He was so much bigger than her and she always felt like a child in his embrace. It felt safe. It felt like home.

"If I'm being honest, I didn't plan to," he muttered into her hair. "But your new friends had other ideas."

Amaya pulled back to look at his face. His wounds had been patched up and he was showered and clean shaven. His hair was tied back in its usual ponytail but little could be done to tame the wild locks and they were already beginning to slip free of their confines.

"They seem like a good bunch. That Zoro, especially. He was the one who found us, you know?"

Amaya blushed and turned her face away, but not before Roland noticed the pink tinge in her cheeks. The corner of his mouth twitched.

"If I didn't know better, I'd say there was a little something-something going on there… He seems to care about you."

Amaya spluttered. "It's not like that! He was the one who found me in the first place."

Roland gave her a pointed look. "And then went out of his way to find you again. Not many people would do that for a stranger."

"The Straw Hats aren't like most people," Amaya said, her fingers trailing absently over her bandaged side. "I owe them so much," she sighed.

Roland gave her a knowing look. "It sounds to me like you've found a pretty great crew here, Maya," he said softly. "I feel better about leaving you in their hands."

"What!?" She must have heard him wrong. Either that or she was still dreaming. She clutched at her side until the wound flared with pain and still those words hung heavy in the air.

He gave her an apologetic smile. "I'm done being a pirate, Maya. I'm not cut out for the New World and I sure as hell ain't cut out to be a King."

Before the last words had even left his mouth, Amaya was already shaking her head. "No. We can start fresh, find a new crew. Together, we can—"

Two large hands fell onto her shoulders, effectively shutting her up. "Maya. I'm done. A captain is responsible for his crew and I failed them. I failed you all."

"You didn't fail me." Tears were welling up in her eyes again. "You never have. I still owe you my life."

"You only have one life to owe, Maya, and it sounds to me like the Straw Hats are where your loyalties should lie." His voice was stern but she could tell it hurt him to utter the words. "If it weren't for them, you'd be dead. And it would have been all my fault."

Amaya clasped his hand. "I don't blame you for what happened."

"You should." He made to pull his hand back but Amaya only clasped it tighter.

"But I don't. Please, Roland, take me with you. We don't have to be pirates if that's what you want. We can just… be."

His eyes softened. "Oh, Maya, you're meant for much greater things. I won't let you give up on your dream for my sake."

"But—"

Roland sighed and stood up, pulling his hand free of her grasp, but not before running a thumb over the bandage that concealed the ugly wound left by her very own weapon. "We'll talk more about this in the morning. It's late and you need your rest."

She shook her head. "I feel fine."

"Sleep. Chopper's orders."

"Aye, Captain," she said, rolling her eyes and turning away from him to stare blankly at the wall by her bed.

Roland stood by her bedside for some time as if he wanted to say something but, in the end, he only sighed. "Goodnight, Maya. I'm sorry." He didn't wait for a response before he left the room, door falling shut behind him with an audible click.

Amaya didn't sleep well that night.

In the morning, the little doctor checked her over. As he changed her dressings, she was finally able to survey the damage to her hand. The sight almost made her gag.

Chopper looked at her apologetically. "It'll heal, but whether you'll get your full range of movement back in that hand… Well, we'll have to wait and see."

Amaya stared down at her damaged hand and tried to make a fist with her fingers. She barely managed a claw before she doubled over in pain, clutching her hand to her chest. She gasped for breath, a cold sweat breaking out over her brow. Chopper placed a hoof on her arm, round eyes wide with concern.

"Don't push yourself too hard. You could damage it even more!"

"Will I be able to write again? To draw?"

Chopper hesitated. "I think so."

"You think so?!"

He bit his lip. "It'll take time, and hard work, but yes, I think you'll be able to do almost everything with minimal pain."

Amaya blinked at him. It wasn't exactly what she wanted to hear. She looked back at her hand, fresh white bandage already crumpled from her attempt. The appendage seemed suddenly unfamiliar, as if it were not longer a part of her. She prided herself in her mastery over her hand, and now it had been rendered useless.

Chopper patted her knee in a consoling manner. "You could try learning how to use your left hand?"

She would have to relearn almost everything she knew but… what other choice did she have?

Chopper deemed her fit to wander around the ship and left her to redress herself. When she stepped out of the med bay, she was met with Roland, who looked as if he had slept about as well as she had. He gave her a sad smile.

"Let's talk after breakfast."

She could only pick at her food, as delicious at it looked. Sanji had outdone himself for her recovery and she felt guilty that when he took her plate away it was still almost full. But he said nothing.

Roland seemed to bear the brunt of the attention at breakfast, bombarded with questions about his ship, his crew, his abilities. Then came the question of where he would go next and he met Amaya's gaze across the table.

"I'm not sure yet," he said, breaking eye contact. "You can drop me at the next island. I'll find my way from there."

All eyes turned to Amaya. She opened her mouth to speak but Roland spoke for her.

"Take good care of Maya for me, alright?"

Luffy chuckled. "Of course we will!" He was met with a chorus of cheers from the other Straw Hats. Even Zoro cracked a smile.

Amaya's heart lurched painfully in her chest. She stood up suddenly, the others falling silent around her, and stormed out, slamming the door to the galley behind her. She heard Roland follow after.

"Maya."

She ignored him, making her way to the crow's nest. He caught her wrist.

"Maya! It's for your own good, okay?"

She whirled on him. "And who are you to decide what's good for me!? Last I checked, you didn't want to be my captain anymore," she spat.

"Then how about as family? As a brother who took you in when no one else would? Would you listen to me then?"

Amaya fell silent. There he went again. Always acting the big brother. Too blind to see she had given her heart to him the day he welcomed her to his crew.

"A brother is never what I wanted in you," she said, voice barely above a whisper.

He looked stricken. "I can't be the person you want me to be. You know that."

"I don't care. Being by your side is enough."

Roland shook his head, frustration entering his voice. "No, it isn't. Maya, those pirates that attacked us… they wanted something from you and they failed to get it. How long do you think it's going to be before whoever is behind all this sends more? You need the Straw Hats more than you need me right now."

"Then stay here. The Straw Hats would welcome you, I know they would."

But Roland was already shaking his head. "As long as I'm here, you would never fully accept Luffy as your captain. I can't have you prioritising me over your crew."

"They're not my crew!"

"But they could be. Please, Maya, you always said you wanted to chronicle the rise of the next Pirate King. I'm putting my money on Luffy and you should too."

Amaya's eyes stung with tears but she refused to let them fall. "I only just got you back and you're leaving again. What if this is the last time we see each other?"

"Then we'll part not as captain and subordinate, but as equals."

There was silence between them for a long time. Amaya was the first to break it.

"I… I do want to stay with them…"

Roland gave her a knowing look. "I know. I've seen the sketches."

Amaya's ears burned at the thought of the green-haired swordsman that littered the margins of her journal.

"Have you thanked him yet?"

"…No…"

"Maybe you should." Roland approached her and wrapped her in a tight hug. "I'm sure we'll meet again, and if by then you still want to be with me, then I'll know you don't belong with the Straw Hats. But until then, give them a chance. See where things go with the cute swordsman, maybe."

Amaya half laughed, half sobbed into his jacket at that comment.

"You'll do great things with the Straw Hats, Maya," he said softly. "I just know it."

"Okay," Amaya said, wiping the stray tears from her cheeks.

"I'll stay."