Prologue

I have not seen all the episodes yet. I am in the Arabasta arc, with Vivi. The crew is about to face Mr. 3. I am on episode 73 to be exact. ANYWAY, that is when this takes place, after they leave that island. The Going Merry is on the way to Arabasta.

Also, this fic contains big Arabasta arc spoilers, and lots of 'em, too. : P

You have been warned. ; )

Vivi was restless. She tossed and turned in her sleep. Nami, who couldn't fall asleep either, watched her and frowned.

(A/N- Anything in parenthesis is a thought.)

(Poor girl,) Nami thought. (That ordeal with the giants and those Baroque Works agents must have terrified her. Thank god Luffy and Usopp were there... We would have died and turned into wax... and Vivi would've been killed by that giant if Luffy wasn't there for her...)

-Vivi's dream-

The two fighting giants Brogy and Dorry stop fighting and look at Vivi. She freezes in terror. They start laughing and they raise their weapons...

"GOMU GOMU NO... ROCKET!"

Luffy comes flying out of the nearby forest and head butts one giant into the other. They both fall down.

Suddenly, Mr. 3, Mr. 5, and Miss Valentine show up, all with horrible looks on their faces...

Luffy stands in front of Vivi protectively. "I got this," he says, out of breath. "Run, Vivi, okay?" He hands her his straw hat. "Take this and run. Promise me you'll give it back, okay?" She doesn't move. The agents start charging.

"GO!" Luffy screams at Vivi before taking the agents head on. An explosion from Mr. 5's snot knocks Vivi out.

When she comes to, she gasps at the horrific scene laid out before her. All three agents are dead. Blood is all over the place. A lot of it is on Luffy's face and hands.

Luffy is out of breath, but he is smiling at the blue-haired princess. He kneels down on both knees and puts Vivi's head in his lap. "You okay?" he asks, stroking her hair.

She finds that her heart is racing. This boy... this man... saved her life. She thought he was so strange. He always acted really weird, really childish. But now she sees his compassionate side. "Vivi... I'll always be here to protect you..." Luffy says softly.

Vivi gets up and kneels in front of Luffy. Wordlessly, he takes her hands. Their faces are getting closer... closer...

-End of dream-

Vivi suddenly sat up in bed in a cold sweat. Nami quickly lied down, pretending to be asleep. She opened one eye the tiniest bit.

Vivi was smiling. She was actually smiling.

(What the hell?) Nami wondered. (Didn't she just have a nightmare?) Then, Vivi said it. The simple words that started it all.

"Luffy... oh, Luffy..." Vivi whispered to herself passionately. She collapsed back onto the bed with a happy sigh. "I think... I'm in love..."

She closed her eyes, and Nami's eyes went wide in shock.

(She... she loves him? Wow...) She silently chuckled to herself. (Like I said before... poor girl.)

Something in the back of her mind was trying to tell her that this was a big deal to her, that it was something she didn't like. She shook it off. (Nah, I don't care if she likes him. Hell, that guy doesn't even understand the first thing about love. And besides, even if they end up together... they would really be a cute couple...)

Something in the back of her mind told her she was lying to herself, but she didn't really notice because she had just fallen asleep.

Sorry if this fic goes against the story line in any way. You can change that kind of stuff in fan fiction anyway, right? This is my first, and probably last, attempt to make a romance fic. Heh, romance is not exactly my forte; this is harder than I thought... Please review and give me any helpful advice you think I might need!