The crew and Sunny are really starting to understand each other and I'm very excited about the shift. :) Also thank you so much for your thoughts on Leo's chapter, and welcome, new readers- especially Thomas Drovin, for all your reviews!

Sunny tried extra hard that day to spend time with his sleuth. When Nami poured through her book of maps (incomplete, she'd said), Sunny nudged his way into the kitchen, which lately Sanji had taken to keeping ajar. He was in the early preparation for a late lunch now that things had settled enough from being on the Grand Line for a few hours.

Sanji's eyes registered Sunny but instead of sitting at the table and asking for food, Sunny walked over to the counter, standing against the cabinet, positioned himself on his haunches and leaped straight up in the air, just grabbing onto the counter ledge and pulling himself up with a proud huff. Sanji, who had jerked forward slightly, up stopped as he was holding a paring knife, looked at his small crewmate quizzically.

Up there, it was easy enough to find the tea kettle hanging from a hook above and moving it down with his uncoordinated forepaws by tucking the large kettle under his chin as best he could.

Sanji tried to go back to peeling potatoes but set his knife down again in curiosity. Sunny rolled his eyes under his eyelids as he set it down with a clunk and scooted it toward the sink. Quickly, he figured out how to make the water go and gestured to it.

"You want me to make you tea?" Sanji asked, finally taking the kettle and filling it with water.

Sunny shook his head and pointed to himself. He wanted to help. After all, he was the junior Lieutenant of Fire and he wanted to help, especially on the Grand Line. Sunny may not protect and lead the crew, or cook, or make things, or navigate, or be a great fighter, but he could care for them.

Maybe someday as strongly and bravely as Laboon did with his crew.

Sunny told Sanji as much as he stood there with a filled kettle. He scratched his head."You want to make the tea yourself? Well alright then." He brought it to the stove and Sunny jumped across the sink, stepped over the knife, and skirted the diced potato bucket to join him.

He wasn't entirely comfortable with an animal running around his counter, but Sunny was his crewmate, and it wouldn't be too much trouble to clean the countertop after he was finished. Especially seeing the determination on the small shrew's face, he was amused to note he looked like he was going into a fight.

He could forgive paws on the sanitized counter just this once, Sanji decided while preparing to switch on the gas for the stove when Sunny made a loud sound of protest that sounded a little like a cut off an alarm bell. The chef jumped and gave Sunny an unimpressed look. But Sunny just shook his head emphatically, and blew a small string-thin flame under the kettle, expanding as it hit the metal.

The blond's eyebrow rose and mouth fell open a bit. "I didn't—you can do that?" He shook off his surprise. "That's a useful trick."

He went back to peeling while Sunny heated the tea in breath-long bursts of the thin flame. Just as he was exhausting and starting to feel the dry sting in his throat, the kettle began to whistle gently, causing Sunny to jump in surprise and Sanji to spring to action, grabbing green tea leaves and steeping them.

"Well done," he said. The next four minutes, Sunny twitched impatiently until Sanji poured a cup of tea and offered it to him. Sunny shook his head, jumped off the counter and lead him to the door.

Puzzled, Sanji followed with the cup and kettle, smiling to himself, led Sanji to Nami. When she looked up at the chef, she said, "Oh, Sanji, did you bring me tea?"

The chef's mouth worked up and down a few times before he spoke. "Nami-swan not even this steaming tea could compare to your hotness! Ah—but actually, Sunny made this all by himself, but if you want anything to go with your tea, I will bake it for you with love, Nami-swan!"

Nami accepted the cup and took a sip. "This is wonderful," she said with a content sigh.

Sunny grinned and jumped onto the pool chair with her, going over to inspect it. Nami lowered it to offer it to him, and Sunny took a delicate sip.

The large shrew sighed as well and Sanji retreated with a rare reserved smile as Sunny curled up at his dear Nami-swan's side.

The next morning, the pirates morning ritual felt completely different while being virtually the same. They woke up, washed up in the bathroom (Sunny giving himself a quick groom), then head to breakfast (oh, look, the two poachers, helping themselves to deviled eggs). After eating, everyone found activities while the prisoners sat together a distance away from the rest.

Usopp was concentrating on a tinkering project he was carrying around in a piece of cloth. Nami kept trying to come by, and Usopp would dart away and set up again across the ship. She gave up quickly and picked up a book.

Sanji stared longingly out into the water in the rare times he wasn't cooking or doting on the women. Zoro trained even longer and harder, even forgoing some of his naps for meditation with his swords. Even Luffy had a strange energy about him on the Grand Line.

"AHHH! We're going the complete wrong way!" Nami screamed. The second half of the day was much more challenging with all hands and paws on deck to try to navigate through the Grand Line's non-sensical magnetic field, errant weather patterns the even Sunny's Sunny Day couldn't dispell, and at least two` near-sinkings from rogue floating boulders or lighting strikes. Finally, things settled down enough for the crew to have dinner late in the night. Then, soaked, everyone but the lookout went to bed.

Sunny felt lonely and missed Laboon, and wished more than ever he could talk to the crew. He was suddenly struck by how intimidating everything was even with the crew he'd grown to love. He was even crossing what might as well be an ocean of magma to be with them.

But he hardly had another moment to think about it as his eyes slipped fully closed, and his damp fur rose and fell in time with gentle snores from the hammocks above.

Sunny woke up in Peacha Cove, the now-unfamiliar filtered light shining through. It was approaching the heat of summer if the cracking pale grass under him was any indication. The tops of the trees had yellowed in the harsh sun, leaving the clearing a dry plain. Even the small lake had dried and receeded into a shallow fraction of its size. Grass pokemon migrated or hid during the worst hours, their own leaves wilting. For many, the hottest region of Johto summer was a time of hardship and hunger. Not so for a cyndaquil family.

Around him, his sleuth was in motion. Typhlosion snoozed on the hot rocks under the sun, occasionally roaring gently at their kits. Two cyndaquil rolled over each other, nipping playfully. The paler cyndaquil dipped his head sheepishly and ran to the Typholosion with a long scar down her nose. A little ways away, a Quilava was splashing in the shallows of the dry lake, snapping up fry and small fish she found hiding in the silted water. Onshore, the darker cyndaquil squeaked in protest as droplets of water landed nearby, making Quilava look up, tossing a guppy up in the air and eating it with a crunch. Cyndaquil needed to be dry at all times, but Quilava were hardier and had no qualms about getting their paws wet if it meant getting a snack. Vesper was always more keen than most. And Mom and Dad sunning on the rock, their last hunt making them lazy.

The larger cyndaquil was contenting himself now with widening a ratatta burrow he'd found. With a strange sensation of removal, Sunny looked from his past self to the paler color cyndaquil, his brother, Red, pressed to their mother's side. He felt weaker, more exposed, a ghost. His life before he knew misfortune, even before he became a pirate. He watched his mother lick a wound on her shoulder. This must have been after she'd gone to the town. She always came back bloody when she went near the town. He saw his younger self yawn and settle down for a nap and he had a sinking question—if he had the chance to go back and leave the Straw Hats, could he? It was painful to even think about leaving them.

His vision went black and Sunny was back in Peacha Cove, not in the clearing, but now seeing from the perspective of his younger self, being held by the scruff my his mother as she ran through the early fall foliage. The dry underbrush crackled with embers as they were flanked on both sides with a growing wildfire. He squirmed in her grasp. Her mouth, paws, and chest were red that might have made her took scary if it wasn't just his mother. His father and siblings were nowhere in sight. He couldn't remember how they were separated, but he did remember a chase. The smoke was beginning to rise, hiding the sky. Sunny remembered the fear as it revisited his chest, knowing a fire this strong when he was so young, could smother and kill him. Sunny knew Vesper could make it, even if she was alone, but he desperately wondered where his little brother was, if he was with their father.

Then, as he remembered, a figure appeared in front of him, floating, maybe a few feet tall. His mother dropped him onto the ground and he lay there, cowering, as she roared at the being in their path. The creature swept an arm in a circle silently. Suddenly, a searingly bright disc was below them, in every direction, spanning out far into the smoke. And Sunny and his mother were plummeting into the brightness, down, down, down, while the trees and rocks and fire stayed in place and white was all that was left.

Sunny sprung in the air with a quiet squeak, jerking his head in every direction to orient himself. He wasn't falling. He was on the floor of the boy's cabin. In the Merry. On the Grand Line, with his crew. His crewmates. The cabin. Everyone was sleeping. He caught his breath, shaking. Laboon. Had it been Laboon that had reminded him of his old world? It wasn't like him to dwell so viscerally in the past. Sunny felt the pang of loneliness in his chest erupt unbearably. His sleuth. Sunny heard something move overheard and peered up to see Luffy flip over with a yawn, and lean over, half off his hammock, with a small frown on his face.

"What are you doing, Sunny?"

Sunny shook his head, taking a moment to try to recollect his disoriented thoughts.

"Did you have a bad dream?" His captain asked. Sunny looked at him, but he was too disoriented to focus on him. Finally, he reached an arm down and scooped Sunny up, plopping him on his chest.

"You miss Laboon?" Luffy asked. "Will food make you feel better? Maybe not…" He rubbed his forehead in thought. "You want to see other guys like you right?"

Sunny nodded, rising and falling slightly with the boy's breathing. Maybe he didn't need to talk to the crew because Luffy listened with his heart instead of his ears.

"I could tell Laboon cared about you too, he wanted me to watch out for you. I could tell. Shishi…" Luffy abruptly shifted, eyes lidding. "Don't worry, Sunny, we'll play in the morning…" And he was out, snoring gently. Sunny had been shifted onto the side of the hammock, pressed against Luffy's side, his captain's arm draped limply over him. The fire type considered moving, but it felt good to be next to someone again.

If felt like home.

The ship's prisoners were beginning to get used to their captivity on the second sailing day. Ms. Wednesday was ordering off-menu, claiming the lounge chair (much to Nami's annoyance), and Mr. 9 had sunbathed in his boxers on the deck (though Ms. Wednesday had swiftly and effectively put an end to that).

The crew was having dinner around a crowded table, Sunny sitting on Usopp's lap to make room for "prisoner side of the table" which were the seats farthest from the cheese plate.

"You're really alright just being dropped off on the nearest island?" Nami asked.

Ms. Wednesday shrugged haughtily. "I know the next island set on the log pose will be Whisky Peak and that will be just fine."

Sanji refilled Nami and Sunny's drinks. "You're so confident Ms. Wednesday-chan!"

Nami glared at him while Sunny slurped up his tea in one breath, exhaling a smoke ring in delight. Usopp ooh'ed a little as the smoke drifted up, fading.

"But what is this Whisky Peak?" Usopp asked, bringing the conversation back on track.

Ms. Wednesday and Mr. 9 exchanged a look. "They're just an island that likes to celebrate, with lots of food, drink, and music," Ms. Wednesday said finally.

"Food?!"

"Heh, sounds alright to me," Zoro said.

Sunny wasn't sure why the mood changed so quickly, but everyone's spirits seemed to elevate at the thought of arriving at Whisky Peak—everyone except Ms. Wednesday and Mr. 9's. But food and drink? Sunny wasn't nearly as enticed as the others, after all, world-class chef Sanji already prepared all their meals, and Nami and Zoro drank like fish no matter where they were.

"How long until we get there, Nami?" Luffy asked.

Nami rubbed her hands together, a smile creeping across her face. "Tonight."

"Thanks for the ride!" Ms. Wednesday shouted, sitting on the railing, before flipping backward into the water followed by Mr. 9 and they both jetted off to shore. Sunny had to wonder how those two were such strong swimmers.

"Weird," Zoro shrugged, as Nami and Usopp positioned the ship into the channel into Whisky Peak to dozens of people waving and throwing confetti on either side. Waiting at the center of a large bridge was a man with curled long blond hair.

"Welcome to Whisky Peak, the Grand Line's Celebration Island!"

Sunny perked up a little more, standing up on his back legs next to Zoro to see more of what was happening.

"Celebrate with us while your Log Pose resets! We welcome all comers, even pirates!"

"Especially pirates!" One shouted from the welcoming crowd.

"Alright!" Luffy cheered. "Drop anchor!"

As soon as they stepped ashore, those with hands were presented with a drink with little umbrellas. When Zoro inevitably was hesitant to accept the tropical drink, it was dumped out without ceremony and in an instant, Zoro was holding a bottle of sake…with a little umbrella in it.

His face split into a wolfish grin.

Before Sunny knew it, the crew was whisked away into a large room completely prepared with a hibachi chef along with lines of food, stacks of drinks, and girls.

The townspeople were not just warm and friendly but seemed to thrive off their own hospitality. As the group was led into town, someone even offered to carry Sunny up a flight of stairs. Sunny looked at him for several moments before racing up to the top of steps himself.

Humans had reacted to him in many ways in his time in this world — fear, curiosity, aggression, but never disinterest. He didn't trust a group that had no reaction to him. He wasn't sure what it meant but it seemed like at least part of their welcome was for show.

Or maybe this was how people on the Grand Line were? A small part of him doubted as the crew was led into a room full of food and drink. A small band in the back began to play, much to Luffy's delight, and as the townspeople presented various offerings, and the party began in earnest.

In the hallway, two of their hosts exchanged words, one holding up a transponder snail. "Let our contact know they've fallen for the trap."

Finally, I can start going into some lore. And changes from the canon story are slowly appearing...you know what they say about small ripples...

PS: Sunny's birth name? Blue, of course!