There weren't very many days of tranquility and bliss when you took up the life of a pirate, so when the rare occasion did arise, the Straw Hats took up most advantage of it. Usopp was hidden away in his workshop, concocting a powerful substance that would "revamp his Tabasco star", laughing in triumph and then squealing in surprise when, as any of them could have guessed, his new experiment back fired. Robin lay relaxed on her lawn chair, sipping on the fruity drink Sanji had given her and reading a thick novel, lounging in the sunshine. Zoro leaned up against the Going Merry's railing, a set of impossibly heavy weights in each hand, lifting them casually as he enjoyed the ocean's salty breeze. Chopper was grinding herbs, Misery was reading the tarot cards she had just spread out, Sanji was working dedicatingly in the kitchen, and Nami was working on yet another portion of her world map. Aris folded her arms against the crow's nest's railing, leaning forward slightly and absorbing as much of the day as she could. Her eyes gazed out into the blue, dancing water before her, the reflecting sun rays making it shimmer like a massive, flowing gem. It was then she noticed the object bobbing in the ocean, the light beaming off of it so brightly, it was actually painful for the seamstress to look at.
"Hey, Luffy," She called down to the man sitting on the ship's figure head, "There's something in the water!" Luffy titled his head up and looked at the girl above him, getting ready to stand up and retrieve it.
"I'll get it, Captain," Robin's smooth voice glided through the air as she stood up, making her way to the side of the ship Aris had been pointing at. Her sapphire eyes spotted the object with ease, and as she reached out her arm, another one sprouted from her palm, and another one from that palm, until a rope of limbs snatched the item and gently tossed it up at the architect. Usopp emerged from his workshop, his usual bandanna absent and wiping the dirt from his cheek with a small cloth. "Here," Robin handed the green sea trash to him, "you do the honors."
"A message in a bottle?" He examined the green glass carefully, rotating it in his hands to view it from all angles. Aris slid down the main mast, quickly jogging towards the group. Zoro turned his head curiously at the people beside him, still lifting the metal bars. The marksman carefully pulled out the cork that had sealed the bottle, sliding his finger inside and with some difficulty, fishing out the rolled up parchment within. He handed the scroll to Robin, who carefully straightened it out. An Eternal Post fell from it's core, but Robin quickly snatched it before it plummeted too far.
"What's it say?" Aris pressed eagerly, excitement radiating from her being.
"If you are," she began, her silk voice the perfect narration, "the pirate of the pirates of the pirates, then bring your trusted partners to this island. The name of the island is... Omatsuri Island."
"Omatsuri Island?" Aris repeated with enthusiasm, looking at the map that was printed on the back of the invitation.
"Yes, Omatsuri Island," Robin confirmed, holding the Eternal Compass in a slender hand and skimming over the invitation with her sharp, cunning eyes, "But I've never heard of that before."
"It must be a trap," Usopp murmured, trying to pull his enlodged finger out of the glass bottle's neck.
"What's Omatsuri Island?" Zoro's interest was now peaked, "They have parties every day or something?" Still clutching the compass, Robin placed her finger on the bold print in the middle of the parchment.
"Please read the following," she read to the group, "Omatsuri Island is the only recreational place on the Grand Line. As it's name implies, every day is a party there. There are many relaxing springs and beauty salons." Nami popped her head out of the woman's cabin, stars practically shining in her eyes.
"Springs and beauty salons?" The Navigator was immediately beside the group, peering over the invitation with beaming interest. "What is that place? It looks nice!"
"Beauties from all over the world will have a good time with you at night?" Usopp rubbed his chin in thought as he read the next line.
"Beauties?" Sanji flew out of the kitchen and loomed over the paper, scanning it with his one gleaming eye, "That's a really good island!"
"And then dinner is a Manchurian-Han Feast," Aris concluded, "I'm not sure what that is, but it sounds delicious!" Chopper, in the blink of an eye, was jumping at Robin, trying to snatch the map.
"What is that? What kind of food is that?" The reindeer had a small river of saliva forming at the corners of his mouth.
"I thought we agreed it was a trap?" Usopp sighed defeated, having a strong hunch where this was going.
"Trap?" Nami spat, grabbing the paper from Robin and inspecting it with her own eyes, "you're so silly! You don't think it's good? There's no problem at all with Omatsuri Island."
"You'll know it's a good island just by it's name," the cook chimed in, placing his hands on his hips, "I can guarantee that!"
"You're so impossible," The marksman mumbled, shaking his head in disbelief.
Misery raised her head from her table and turned golden eyes to Luffy, who had remained silent on the sheep's head through out the entire conversation. She rested her chin in her palm, a small smile curling the corners of her mouth. "What should we do, Captain?" A few moments of silence passed between them. "Hey, Luffy." The captain said nothing. The fortune teller let her hand slip and hit the table in a loud thump, making the cards that were spread on it jump out of place. "Luffy, are you listening to me? Luffy!"
"Nami, can you read that again?" Luffy lifted his head, but didn't deter his gaze from the never ending ocean. The Navigator blinked at him, then looked down at the invitation once more.
"Uh, sure. 'If you are the pirate of the pirates of the pirates, then bring your partners to this island.' "
"Okay," the man in the red vest slapped his folded knee, hauling himself up to his feet, "I've decided." His crew looked at his back expectantly, waiting for his answer. "We'll go to Omatsuri Island." He whipped his head around to face his crew, his signature grin ear-to-ear grin etched on his face. "We are pirates, after all!"
I was going to upload this in a separate story by itself, but lo and behold, I can't figure out this error message!