A/N: ZareEraz here! I'm back quicker than I'd thought I would be, but lucky you! This chapter when more smoothly than the last and for that, I'm grateful :3 I hope that you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! Happy reading! :3
Chapter Three: After All is Said and Done
About three-fourths back to where everyone was, and after both she and Shanks had been pushing each other playfully down the beach, Buggy came to a realization. "We need to stop going to tropical islands. We should find a winter or a fall island next time."
"Why?" Shanks asked. He did not get it; he loved partying on tropical islands.
"Because we always seem to have big arguments on them, which results in one of us needing to rescue the other." Buggy gave him a look. "And don't say anything about always doing the rescuing."
"I wasn't gonna," he lied.
"Yes, you were," she replied.
"Yes, I was," he admitted. "But, ooo! Yes! Let's find a winter island!" Buggy was surprised since Shanks had loved spring and summer islands for as long as she'd known him. But then he continued and it all made sense. "I want to snuggle up to you with a hot cup of cocoa and then we can take off our clothes and share body heat-ow!" He was cut off when the bluenette yanked on his signature hair harshly.
"We just had sex and now you're thinking of more sex?!"
"Yes? Is there a problem? I love making love to you. I wanna do it all the time." And he said it so sincerely! Buggy's mouth dropped open at his frankness but also how good that made her feel. Why the hell did she ever think that he was not going to want her?!
Then she got a little tongue-tied. "Well…that was…what I mean is…um…what you said…uh…" She blushed cutely, not actually knowing what to say, and Shanks swooped in and kissed her on the nose.
"I know what you mean, Buggs."
"G-good," she floundered, "Because I-I don't know if I do." Her blush deepened a shade and the man wondered if he should make a perverted comment to make her blush redder or just keep the moment light. He figured that he'd teased her enough today and kept it light
"But if we do find a winter island, we could make snowmen just like when we were kids," he commented, remembering all the fun they had.
"Yeah," Buggy smiled, happy to have a conversation to grab onto that didn't make her blush or stutter. "And we could make them look like old man Rayleigh and Captain Roger!"
"Like how you made carrots into the captain's mustache!" Shanks laughed, remembering that she'd even carved the carrots to match the swoop of the man's mustache.
"And like how you stole Rayleigh's glasses and put them on his snowman!" She was laughing now too. "He was furious when he couldn't find them and bonked us on the head," her voice then dropped to mutter, "Even though it was all your fault and I had nothing to do with it!"
Ignoring the last bit, Shanks replied, "But he was still laughing with the rest of us and the captain even put his hat on his snowman. That was a good day."
"It was, wasn't it?" the bluenette got a wistful look on her face as she stared out at the sea. "I miss those days."
"I do too," Shanks responded softly, bumping shoulders with her. "But we couldn't do what we're doing now back then, and I like having you as my lover."
"Didn't stop you from trying," she reminded him. "You kept trying to kiss me but I kept running away because I was too embarrassed to admit that I kinda, maybe, sorta could tolerate you, and Captain Roger did not help the situation because he only spurred you on until he got bonked by Rayleigh."
Shanks smiled at the series of memories that ran in his head of all the times that he tried to get Buggy to kiss him and chuckled dryly. "Well, clearly he had something right, because here we are." The man leaned over and kissed his girlfriend's hair.
"I bet he's laughing at us right now somewhere," the woman chuckled, bumping her hip against the man's, or as near to it as she could get – he was taller than her after all.
"I bet he is," Shanks replied, bumping her back. A content silence descended after that, neither of them finding the need to talk anymore. They both listened to the waves crashing against distant rocks and the call of sea birds in the air. The day had been quite a hectic one, but it was nowhere near done, even with night approaching. Both Buggy and Shanks knew that their crews were going to be rowdy and that the two of them were probably going to be the butt of many jokes that night, so they enjoyed the peace as long as they could.
When the pair finally returned to their crews, the sun was just barely setting, the vibrant yellows and pinks transforming into burning oranges and deep purples. The Red Hair and Buggy Pirates had made several bonfires and were well into the eating-until-we-pop phase of the evening, having also set up grills and cooking fires to feed the hoard. As Buggy and Shanks approached, the tantalizing smell of roasting meat and fresh-cut fruits, predictably, made the woman's mouth water.
"Oh thank god, I'm starving!" Buggy made a beeline toward the bonfires and barbeque, leaving Shanks behind. She even ignored the calls of crewmates from both sides in her rush to get food. Her quick departure did not go unnoticed by the group of officers hanging out around their own fire, letting the more wild men have their fun at a distance.
"I wonder why she's so hungry," Yasopp chuckled, elbowing Galdino who also smiled mischievously. The rest of the group also smiled and they even began chuckling when the redheaded man approached them.
"What's so funny?" he asked.
"Boss, you've still got lipstick on your face," Benn said, tapping the corner of his own mouth. The captain made an "ah" sound, smiled, and wiped at where his first mate was pointing on his own mouth.
"So," Shanks started giving Yasopp, Lucky Roo, Benn, Alvida, and Galdino a knowing look, "Who won the bet this time?"
The officers of the Red Hair and the Buggy Pirates all pointed towards Galdino, who smiled smugly. "Benn would've won if you'd been carrying Buggy back but since you weren't, I won." Shanks decided to keep quiet on the fact that he'd carried Buggy for quite some time that day.
"At least he said you'd be back before sunset," Yasopp grumbled. "The rest of us said after sunset."
"I honestly thought you were going to take longer," Alvida shrugged. "According to what Galdino told me, the two of you spend a lot of alone time together. I'm actually surprised you're back so soon."
Shanks was the one laughing now. "Well, I think Buggy wanted a real bed for more, rigorous activities," he replied.
A shout from across the beach interrupted the conversation. "You're talking about me! I can feel it!" Buggy snapped, and the whole group just shrugged with sheepish looks on their faces before bursting into laughter. Her face flamed a deep red, even in the warm light of the bonfires, but she just went back to what she was doing. When the woman finally came back over, she had a heaping plate of food and ordered Shanks to sit down somewhere. Once he'd found a chair and sat down, the bluenette proceeded to sit down sideways in his lap and share the plate between them, just as he'd done before their fight.
"Wow, that's quite a change from this afternoon," Alvida teased, eating her own dinner delicately after a smitten Buggy pirate brought it over. The group had also been joined by Mohji and Cabaji and Richie, as the three of them needed a break from entertaining the masses. The lion was happily stuffing his face with his friends and wasn't having any misinterpreted thoughts about food because he already had a heaping pile of it.
"Don't remind me," Buggy grumbled, stabbing a piece of meat with a vengeance and shoving it into her mouth in an unladylike manner before doing the same to a roasted piece of pineapple.
Shanks mouthed, "She's sensitive about it!" and got whacked on the head when Buggy caught him.
"We've worked things out," she hissed, giving the redhead a sharp look and shoving a piece of meat into his mouth to shut him up.
"Aw, such a doting girlfriend," Yasopp teased and he found a cob of roasted corn being thrown at his head, which he dodged (Lucky Roux caught it and gobbled it up).
"You better believe it! I'm the best girlfriend ever!" Buggy snapped, her foul mood returning.
All the Buggy Pirates who'd heard her shout chorused, "Captain Buggy is the best girlfriend ever!"
Several of the officers were about to remind the woman of her behavior that afternoon but Shanks piped up with, "Captain Buggy is the best girlfriend ever!" before taking the hotdog she was about to throw at Galdino out of her hand and went to put it in his mouth.
The bluenette snatched it back because she'd decided to eat the hotdog rather than throw it (it was her favorite food after all). She then retorted, "Smartass," before shoving nearly half of it into her mouth and chewing moodily. Shanks just smiled at her and imagined what other things he'd like to have in her mouth while eating off of their plate.
The rest of the evening devolved into the pirates' normal carousing: silly games, lots and lots of food, drunken dancing, various circus acts and feats of daring, and Buggy making a scene. The bluenette also seemed to have calmed down regarding her insecurity toward Alvida and she was more comfortable with Shanks being around her and showing affection, but not by much. It didn't help that Shanks got a little handsy with her, promoting those around them to laugh when she blew her top in embarrassment. She then spent the night keeping her wits about her so that he didn't slip his hand into her bottoms in front of everyone. Though, as revenge, she did smack him on the ass once before floating her own ass into the air to get it out of the way while he tried to grab it. Alvida thought that was the funniest thing, laughing every time Buggy playfully tormented the man and the two women got along conspiratorially again.
The chaos of the beach banquet was then focused to point when someone started singing "Bink's Brew" and Buggy's and Shanks' heads whipped around. Both of them vividly remembered many times when the Roger crew sang the song with gusto - rain or shine, day or night. It was something that Shanks and his own crew sang often enough but there was just something so special about being together and hearing a song that defined their lives for so long. Smiles grew on their faces and the faces of all the pirates. Shanks leaped to his feet and ran to dance around a bonfire as the first strains rang out.
Yo hohoho, yo hohoho! Yo hohoho, yo hohoho!
Yo hohoho, yo hohoho! Yo hohoho, yo hohoho!
Before the verse began, Galdino stood in front of Buggy and offered her a bow and a hand with a flourish. "Would you care to dance?" And then a teasing smile crept onto his face. "Since your boyfriend had seemed to have run off." The bluenette rolled her eyes at the wax man but took his offered hand. The pair began to dance and sing together with everyone else and Benn even managed to get Alvida to join in, dragging her away from the men she'd charmed into serving her.
Gather up all of the crew, it's time to ship out Binks' brew!
Sea wind blows, to where, who knows? The waves will be our guide!
O'er across the ocean's tide, rays on sunshine far and wide,
Birds they sing, of cheerful things, in circles passing by.
By that time, someone had found no less than four guitars and pirates who could play them and other crewmembers had made impromptu drums out of empty barrels so the melody sounded fairly decent as they plonked along with the cheers.
Bid farewell to weaver's town, say so long to port renowned!
Sing a song, it won't be long, before we're casting off!
Cross the gold and silver seas, a salty spray puts us at ease!
Day and night, to our delight, the voyage never ends!
Buggy found herself laughing and singing at the same time because she and Galdino were horrible at dancing together and kept bumping into other people around them. She just giggled a little uncontrollably when it happened but was eventually saved by Yasopp cutting in during the interlude and twirling her away. The two of them danced a little better, but since Buggy was still wearing tall wedges on the sand, she stumbled quite a bit, despite the sniper's best efforts to keep her upright.
Gather up all of the crew, it's time to ship out Binks' brew!
Pirates, we eternally are challenging the sea!
With the waves to rest our heads, ship beneath us as our beds,
Hoisted high upon the mast, our jolly roger files!
At that point, Benn scooped up Buggy before she landed in the sand because she'd tripped herself right out of Yasopp's arms. Placing a hand in his and the other on his shoulder, she helped right herself, and then remembered that she could float. She disconnected her ankles with a huff and let her feet do whatever while Benn smoothly moved them around the bonfire. The bluenette gave Yasopp an apologetic smile when he saw her dancing smoothly and pointed to her ankle stubs. His jaw dropped in mock offense and then Alvida was dropped into his arms (because she was getting twirled around too), distracting the man. He danced with her much better than he did with Buggy, much to his delight.
Somewhere in the endless sky, stormy winds are blowing by,
Waves are dancing, evening comes, it's time to sound the drums!
But steady men, and never fear, tomorrow's skies are always clear!
So pound your feet and clap your hands 'til sunny days return!
Yo hohoho, yo hohoho! Yo hohoho, yo hohoho!
Yo hohoho, yo hohoho! Yo hohoho, yo hohoho!
While she and Benn were stepping to the music, a gentle hand tapped the first mate on the shoulder. Shanks and his charming smile stepped out from behind his friend and said, "I'd like to dance with my girlfriend if you don't mind."
"Of course not," Benn replied graciously, guiding Buggy's hand into Shanks before leaving them together.
The man drew her in close and put his arm around her waist and her arms went around his neck as the song continued on, the ruckus seeming to fade into the background as the days of their childhood were pulled from their memories. The two of them softly put their foreheads together and swayed as they sang the next verse softly. Star-filled skies, nights of dancing, raging storms, sunny skies, seas in the clouds, and many, many happy moments drifted in and out of their thoughts. Shanks reminisced about their fun times together and being pulled along by Captain Roger's crazy ideas while Buggy mostly remembered their arguments and make-ups afterward, helped along by Rayleigh, of course. The pair smiled and chuckled together, their embrace becoming that much closer as their crews spun around their slower dance.
Gather up all of the crew, it's time to ship out Binks' brew.
Wave goodbye, but don't you cry, our memories remain.
Our days are but a passing dream, everlasting though they seem.
Beneath the moon we'll meet again, the wind's our lullaby.
Gather up all of the crew, it's time to ship out Binks' brew.
Sing a song, and play along for all the oceans wide.
After all is said and done, you'll end up a skeleton,
So spread your tale from dawn 'til dusk upon these foamy seas.
By the end of the final "Yo hohohos," neither Buggy nor Shanks was singing, just swaying gently back and forth to the music and the uproarious chorus of their pirates around them. They were in their own little worlds as the notes faded away and cheers went up for another rendition of the beloved song. Shanks held the woman he loved in his arm, his eyes closed, and his chin rested on her head. She smelled of the sea mostly with a bit of the earthiness of the cave, but there was the faintest whiff of her lavender perfume still lingering in her hair, and she felt warm in his embrace. Oh, my Buggy girl, he thought, pulling her in so that they were chest to chest. Her arms drifted down from his neck and wrapped around his waist, her right hand taking a moment to brush against the scar on his left arm. Her hands were trembling against his back, but he knew that she was just fine (he wouldn't tell her that he could feel the few tears that had managed to sneak out against his skin). He didn't want this moment to end – a slight sea breeze, the light-filled skies above, good food and good friends, the glow of the fires, and the woman he loved right where he wanted her to stay forever. It could never last, but he could dream all the same.
For the pair, the moment lingered on until a pineapple was thrown into the air and nearly bonked Buggy on the head. Shanks spun her out of the way and the fruit clocked someone else in the face, but it was already too late – the spell between them had been broken. He looked at Buggy who blinked owlishly as if she'd just woken up from a dream. They stood in the middle of the milling crowd a little awkwardly but were still close. Buggy stood up on her tip toes and placed a soft kiss on Shanks' lips, her gentle touch warming his heart and getting some "oooooooo's" from anyone who was paying attention. Before either spoke, they got swept up into a dance line that started on the tail end of the second round of Binks' Brew, and their sweet moment was left behind. Buggy had to hang onto Shanks' waist because some other pirate had grabbed his only hand. Alvida snagged her other hand and everyone got pulled along in the very silly, very drunk line, continuing the night in that manner.
At an ungodly hour of merry-making, the bluenette decided that she wanted to sleep in a bed instead of on the beach (especially since the night before they'd all passed out on the Red Force's deck) and got up to leave. Alvida was still holding court and waved good night to her friend and Galdino was passed out from drinking with Cabaji and Mohji and Richie. Shanks, seeing his girl starting to walk off, ran after her, fist bumping Benn, Yasopp, and Lucky Roux along the way before placing that hand on Buggy's hip when he reached her side.
"Where do you think you're going?"
The bluenette rolled her eyes. "To bed, Shanks. Duh."
"Without me?" he mock-asked.
"Clearly not, since your arm is now wrapped around my waist," she smirked. But she ended up pinching his ear when his hand slipped lower to cup her ass. Shouts followed them down the beach and Buggy waved magnanimously to her adoring crew while yanking her boyfriend with her by his ear until she let him go. Shanks and his crewmates winked at each other as their captain followed after his beautiful lady, the light from the bonfires and the shadows dancing over their skin.
The pair of captains then ran into a problem that they had not foreseen as the two of them stood in front of their ships. They looked between the Red Force and the Big Top and each other, utterly at a loss of what to do because now they had two places with captain's rooms and captain's beds. Buggy started overthinking things again: If she went to Shanks' room would she seem like too much of a pushover? Like he had her wrapped around his finger and she couldn't be without him for a night? Or would it be completely normal even though her own ship was here? If she went to her room – potentially by herself (but probably not) – would she seem standoffish and cold? When her brain started to swirl those thoughts around in her brain faster and faster, she took a deep breath and tried to let them out calmly. But she failed spectacularly.
"Um…" Buggy started, then she panicked a little, waving her hands around erratically. "What do we do? Where am I going to sleep? In your room? In my room?" Before Shanks could answer any of those questions, she barreled on with, "Do we sleep separately now-"
"No!" the man instantly protested, startling her into a pause. He wasn't giving her up that easily and grabbed her hand, hauling her toward the Big Top. "Let's go sleep at your house," the redhead declared. Buggy was surprisingly pleased that he wanted to go to her ship, until he opened his big mouth again. "Besides, I want to snoop in your room!"
"Hey! Don't you dare!" Shanks dashed up the gangway, tugging her along while she tried to slow him down. It didn't work and the two of them stumbled onto the deck and scared a pirate awake who had passed out against a railing. Buggy started giggling as the man fell back into his drunken sleep (but would definitely give him a hard time about it tomorrow).
Shanks asked, "Where's your room?" as he continued to drag Buggy around, but she wasn't talking.
"I'm not telling you if all you're going to do is snoop!"
"Aw, come on! You've been living in my room since I picked you up!"
"I never said I was going to be fair!" The redhead pulled the two of them into the huge tent on the deck, thinking that would be a good place to start. There was a trap door that led into the bowels of the ship, but when he found a door partially hidden behind a curtain Buggy started trying to drag him away even harder than she had before.
"I'm on the right track!" he said gleefully and used his monster strength to haul her towards the door.
"Nooooo!" Buggy disconnected her feet and grabbed onto his bare torso. She actually managed to float him away for just a moment until he got his one, damn hand on the doorknob and ended up pulling her back to the ground. He pulled himself inside and slammed the door shut behind them, accidentally shutting Buggy's feet out. "Oi!" She bopped him on the head and he opened the door just enough to let her wedges walk themselves in before slamming the door shut, but that didn't stop Buggy from trying to pry the door open again.
The man looked around Buggy's room with avid interest even as the clown woman tried to get him out. Eventually, she gave up and he could relax. He took in the circus-centric décor, the striped curtains over her bed and the surprising normality of her furniture (for her, anyway). Things were flashy, but they definitely weren't as flashy as he was expecting them to be. And then he saw the hammock suspended on the far side of her bed and a huge smile spread on his face.
"It's just like on Captain Roger's ship!" Shanks said, delighted. Buggy was confused because her room looked nothing like anything on the Oro Jackson. She even said so, but Shanks wasn't paying attention to her. He instantly ran towards the hammock and practically jumped into it. Buggy flinched and prayed that her ceiling and the fasteners could take the weight. Thankfully, they did and Shanks swung haphazardly for several minutes as he tried to get settled. Once he was only gently rocking, he beckoned for Buggy to come to him. She walked up to the hammock and put her hands on her hips, giving him an exasperated but warm smile.
"What?" Without answering, the man's hand shot out and grabbed her upper arm, hauling her into the hammock as well. Buggy shrieked as she was jostled onto his chest and sent the hammock wildly swinging again. "What the hell are you doing?!" she hissed, trying to stabilize them.
"Isn't this cozy?"
"No, it's swingy!" He laughed and pulled her into his chest. She hissed some insults at him but also clung to him at the same time until the hammock settled down again.
Buggy also settled down, laying on the man's bare chest and draping her legs around his hips. She rested her cheek against him and listened to the strong beat of his heart. Shanks was also listening to her, focusing on the soft sounds of her breathing. His hand came up to her bun and gently twirled his finger around a few strands that had worked their way loose. The man, wanting to run his fingers through her blue locks, carefully took out pin after pin and tossed them at a nearby dresser. Most of the pins made it onto the shelf, but he did miss once or twice. Once her blue hair was loose, Shanks pulled at the yellow ribbon holding it back from her face, enjoying how one side of the bow shrunk and disappeared before the whole thing popped apart. The ribbon was also tossed towards the dresser but ended up fluttering to the ground and pooling there. Now that it was free, he could run his hand through Buggy's hair, enjoying the feel and the content noises the bluenette made as she was petted. Several quiet minutes passed between them, the pair content and enjoying the calm.
Shank spoke up first. "I was going to spoil you tonight, but now I just want to stay like this."
"It's nice," she agreed. "Reminds me of the old days. We did sleep like this a lot when we were kids, didn't we?" Buggy got nostalgic, thinking of how Shanks used to haul her into his hammock to both piss her off and snuggle with her. Even though they weren't a couple as children, they had enjoyed a certain amount of affection (when Buggy wasn't irritated with him, of course).
Shanks started playing with a lock of her hair as they gently rocked in the hammock. "Buggy," he started, "I think I've said this before, but I think I loved you all the way back then. I just didn't know it."
"Which just begs the question of how you could love me if you didn't know it," she replied. "But I kinda get it, I guess." She tipped her head up to kiss his jaw. "But what's really important is that you love me now." She smiled at him and winked.
"How could I not?" The woman smiled bigger and then Shanks caused her to scowl by saying, "Even if you're trouble every step of the way!" She tried to pinch both of his cheeks and pull them while he batted her hands away.
In their jostling and swinging, Shanks felt the woman's breasts rubbing against him in a way that was dragging his thoughts back to his promise to spoil Buggy, even though he'd just said that he probably wasn't going to do that. But before he knew it, his hand had drifted down her back and to her ass, slipping beneath the bow to find that exposed circle of skin in her swimsuit.
"I thought you said you weren't going to 'spoil me?'" she poked, feeling his body tense up in a familiar way. She reached behind her to grab his wrist and bring his hand back up to his chest. He broke free of her and let his fingers feather through her hair again, coming to a rest at the back of her head.
"What can I say? I'm completely seduced by you." He kissed her firmly with his admission, the hand at her neck tipping her head so that her big, red nose didn't poke him in the eye. When they parted he asked, "Maybe just your breasts?" and gave her puppy eyes. She pursed her lips and they looked so inviting that he had to kiss them again, giving her a few little pecks until she pulled away enough to answer.
"Fine," she sighed and he smiled with delight. Buggy carefully sat herself up so that the hammock didn't swing wildly and being unintentionally seductive, slipped the straps of the swimsuit off of her shoulders and pulling the garment over her head. Flinging it away, she let Shanks look at her, her round breasts bare to his gaze. He smiled at her, just the barest twitch from the corners of his mouth and she knew what he was thinking, what he wanted to do to her.
"Those look good." His voice was low and a hint of desire snaked into his words.
Buggy placed her hands underneath her breasts and pushed them up a bit. Innocently looking down at her hardening nipples, she replied coyly. "These old things?"
"Don't say that, Buggs. You're not a day over twenty-nine."
"Snake charmer," she dropped her breasts, letting them bounce and watching her lover watch them bounce. She leaned back down until she was laying on his broad, hard chest and sighed at his warmth. "Do they feel good as well as look good?"
"Most definitely," he sighed, taking her warmth in as well. She was so soft again him, the exact opposite of his hard body. He bundled the woman up in his arms, wanting more and ready to move on to more heated things, but then Buggy stifled a yawn. "Are you tired?" She couldn't answer right away because another yawn came and just nodded her head.
"I'm sorry," she apologized. "You were wanting more, weren't you?" She shook her head, trying to wake herself up but it wasn't working. The adventures of the day had caught up to her and she was going to crash. "Damn."
"Don't apologize, Buggs," he gently reassured her, cupping her face. "This is more than enough. We have all the time tomorrow if you want."
"I know you want," she smirked and then yawned for the third time. She frowned afterward, blinking sleepily. "I want to too but I got really tired," she groaned in frustration.
He kissed her on the forehead and wrapped his arm around her to keep her a little warmer. "Then get some sleep, sweetheart."
"That's a new one…" she mumbled, resting her head fully on his chest. She had the sense to float both of her hands over to the bed and grabbed a pillow and a blanket. The man leaned forward to allow her hand to squish it behind his head and shoulders. He then helped her other hand drape the blanket over them both and held it up so both hands could float back to her wrists, which were sandwiched by his sides.
Settled again, the redhead stated, "I'll say this every time, but that's damn convenient." All he got back was a hum in response and then Buggy was out, sleeping contently on his chest.
Shanks smiled happily and softly petted her hair. While he had wanted to please her again, this was fine too, just having her with him. After all was said and done, after all the fights and the make ups, after all the chaos and the sweet moments, he only wanted to be close to her. He didn't need anything else. And just like on the nights where he had bullied Buggy into his hammock when they were kids, he listened to the sound of her quiet breathing (which was quickly turning into quiet snoring) and the sound of the waves. So much had changed between then and now, but this feeling of contentment, and now love, would always be the same for him. The man closed his eyes and draped his arm across his lover's back, falling asleep with her warmth all around him. As he dreamed, a soft smile pulled at his lips, matching the one on his lover's face.
The End.
A/N: And there you go! I'll see you in the next story! Bye for now :3