The sky told of a very serious storm coming their way. Nami estimated they had a few hours still, but it would be a bad one, and she didn't want to be anywhere near land or other ships when the sea got too angry, lest they crash against something. They had docked at the island just to stock up on supplies and get on their way. Nami wanted no trouble, no fights, just food, medicine, fresh water, some materials in case the Thousand Sunny got a little worse for wear during the storm and they would be on their way. She forbade everyone but Sanji, Chopper and Franky to leave the ship and told them to get whatever they needed in two hours.
Of course, Luffy jumped ashore as soon as her back was turned. Robin was content sitting on the deck enjoying Brook's latest composition, and Zoro was napping against the balustrade. Nami sighed and shouldered her purse, intent on doing some shopping and keeping an eye on the boys.
It was a touristy town, the houses painted light pastel colours and the streets wide enough for vendors and stalls. They knew the weather well enough and were hastily wrapping up their last sales of the day and packing up. Nami pouted at the slim pickings, but shrugged and decided to do some shopping the next time they docked and had more time. She heard shouting and turned her head, only to see Franky leaving a shop, his body barely fitting through the door, a scowl on his face.
"Oh no…" Nami pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. Calling out to him, she approached. The cyborg was arguing with a man in the shop, who was shooing him out with a broom. The man was stout and hunched over a limp, with a nasty scowl on his greasy face. Nami raised her eyebrows at the scene, but decided to observe for now.
"You can't treat people like that!" Franky was saying.
"Bla-bla-bla!" the man poked Franky in the chest with the broom. "My store, my rules. "Get out!"
"This is absurd!"
Every time Franky tried to speak, the man would only scream 'bla-bla-bla' louder and louder, until Franky just put his fists on his hips and looked at Nami, flabbergasted.
"What's going on?" She finally asked.
"Yeah, go hide behind a little girl!" the man slammed the shop door in their face.
"This asshole is mistreating a worker, and I spoke up for her." He shook his head and looked up at the sudden gust of cold wind. "Apparently I only made things worse for her."
"I wish those kinds of people didn't exist." Nami huffed, glaring at the man through the store glass as he threw a piece of wood on a girl kneeling on the floor, cleaning what seemed to be broken pieces of glass. She winced at the abuse and looked up at Nami, but a hit with the broom made her look down again. "We can't leave her there." she looked up at Franky.
"She's not underage, she can leave whenever she wants." Franky scowled at the scene before them. "And I thought you didn't want us picking fights."
"Well, no…" Nami winced at the wind. They had little time to get to the ship, so with heavy hearts they turned and hurried back. They met Sanji dragging a pouting Luffy on the way, finding Chopper already on deck, worriedly looking out for them. As soon as their eyes met, he waved.
"Nami! Franky! Sanji! Luffy! The storm is coming!" he was holding on to Zoro's leg who was holding the plank steady for them. Robin, Usopp and Brook were all readying the ship for the storm. Nami started giving out orders to secure the ship, but looked to her right as a sharp whistle caught her attention. A dock worker was waving a flag at her.
"Miss Navigator!" he called over the wind. "All ships are being towed to the caverns before the storm!"
"Thank you, but we're setting out!" She called back.
"There's no time!" he waved and two other workers threw thick ropes to them.
"What should we do, Nami-san?" Sanji and Zoro had caught the ropes. Nami knew to listen to locals, they knew the weather best, so she nodded and decided to wait out the storm in the caverns.
The dockworkers were efficient, one of them coming aboard to help steer the ship to safety.
"You're lucky we caught you before you left!" He was saying to Nami. "Many Navigators think they have enough time before the storm hits, but the winds change around the mountains there!" He gestured to the west side of the island. "We tow shipwrecks nearly every week!"
"I'm glad you did!" Nami yelled over the wind. After a while, they were safely inside spacious caverns, the wind howling furiously outside.
There were fishing boats, a pleasure cruise, some other ships, and a big stone platform carved into the stone. It seemed like the whole town was gathered on that platform, food stalls and tents with cots spread across the cavern wall.
"The town gathers here during storms like these." The dock worker answered her questioning gaze. "It's safer than staying in our homes, in case something flies off in the wind and crashes against a house." Nami nodded in understanding.
"How long do these storms last?" She asked.
"Hard to say." The man shrugged as he followed the crew off the ship. "Sometimes hours, sometimes days." He looked at their crestfallen faces. "There's enough food for a month here, and the townspeople play games and tell stories, it's quite fun!"
Luffy immediately perked up at the mention of food, declaring to everyone they were going to have dinner with the townspeople.
"I suppose I can do with a day off." Sanji smiled and looked appreciatively at the hot pot a young man was tending to.
They were fairly at ease, no marine ships were docked in the cavern, and as long as they kept their peace, pirates were a welcome addition to the economy. The hours passed with lots of food, music and merrymaking. Brooke was entertaining the townsfolk along with another two fiddlers after they had overcome their fright of him. Luffy and Usopp were laughing with some kids as they played. Sanji, Robin, Chopper, Zoro and Nami sat at a table, still eating. Franky was constantly checking on the Thousand Sunny, but he seemed satisfied with its safety.
"Excuse me." A voice called from the end of the table. "Would any of you like some milk tea?"
They turned to see a young woman holding a pile of cups neatly stacked inside one another in one hand and a ceramic jug of steaming liquid in the other. She could be Nami's sister, they were so similar. The only differences were her eyes and hair, which were much lighter, strawberry blond hair pulled up in a bun and light honey eyes smiling at them from behind golden-rimmed glasses. The smell of cinnamon and herbs made them sigh and nod their heads.
"How much?" Nami asked.
"Don't worry about it, miss." The young woman smiled as she poured and handed them cups. "It's from my garden, I wanted everyone to taste since it'll be a while until I can make it again."
"How come?" Robin asked.
"Well, the storm usually uproots most of my plants, so I harvested as much as I could before we came here. Without properly drying the herbs, they'll just go to waste. So I like to share, and keep everyone at ease too." she shrugged and handed Chopper his cup.
"Hmmm!" He smiled and wiggled his hips at the smell and kindness. "You won't make me like you with this, idiot!" The woman blinked and her smile faltered a bit.
"Don't mind him, my lady!" Sanji stood and made to take her free hand in his, but she stepped back quickly, serving him some milk tea instead. He may not be as popular as he liked with the ladies, but he knew when someone didn't wish to be touched. He accepted with a smile, pretending not to notice her nervousness. Taking a sip, he hummed in appreciation. "This is very good!" He drank more. "Could I bother you for the recipe?" Her eyes immediately lit up.
"Oh, it's quite simple, really, it's just cinnamon, cloves, cardam-" She snapped her head down and hunched her shoulders as a stout man appeared behind her and slapped the back of her neck, grabbing her arm and dragging her away, a stream of profanities coming from his mouth. Nami recognized him from before and rose in anger. Sanji set his cup down and stepped towards the man pulling the young woman away.
"I've told you a thousand times before, you dumb bitch, stop giving out free food!" he grabbed the back of her neck in a vice grip and shook her. "You're not the one paying for any of this, you freeloading whore!"
"I bought that milk with my own money!" she argued.
"Money I gave you! You're so ungrateful, you should just go live your own life, see if the world doesn't chew you up and spit you back out aga-HEY!" He looked back at Sanji, who was holding his wrist firmly in his hand, his head bowed, a shadow over his face.
"Let go of her, now." He said lowly. "That's no way to treat a lady."
"This freeloader? A lady?" The little man scoffed and yanked his wrist away. "Let go of me, curly."
"Sir, please, I don't want to get you in trou-AAH!" Her face whipped to the side and she dropped the jug to hold her cheek, making it shatter on the ground.
"Why did you do that?" The man raised his hand again as he saw the shards on the floor. "You want some of your shit milk? I'm going to rub your face in-ACK!"
Sanji was on fire. His cigarette dropped on the floor, he had bitten the filter off in his rage. Holding the little man's neck in his palm, he squeezed his fingers, lifting him easily off the floor.
"You never lay a hand on a woman, you sleazy coward!" He squeezed harder. A gentle hand on his arm made him look to the side. The woman had wiped her tears off her face and was looking at him.
"He's not worth it." She whispered. A gaggle of townspeople were already surrounding them, whispering and shaking their heads. Sanji dropped the man, who managed to stay standing, immediately letting out a string of further profanities and reaching to grab the woman. She stepped back.
"I've had enough of your abuse." She said. Her lip quivered, but her head remained high.
"You're abandoning the shop? Your family? After everything we did for you? Ungrateful bitch. Don't expect to be welcomed after you come crawling back." He spat at her. The woman had tears running down her cheeks as she wiped the spit off her neck. Her voice was the only thing not shaking as she calmly declared:
"I'd rather die." And she turned and walked away. An old couple followed her, the wife handing her a tissue. The man made to follow her, but Sanji stepped in front of him, lighting another cigarette, cursing his shaking hands.
"You take another step and I'll break your legs." He inhaled and puffed smoke in the short man's face.
"Good riddance!" And he walked away. The townspeople slowly dispersed and Sanji looked around for the woman, but she was nowhere to be found. He went back to his Nakama. Their cheer had died down some, and they enjoyed the milk tea, even though it was cold. As the cave entrance darkened, the storm still raged outside, and the townspeople trickled to the tents with cots in them. The straw hat pirates went back to their ship and settled in for the night.
Luffy was supposed to be on watch, but everyone knew he slept through anything. Sanji was still seething, so he decided he'd take watch with their captain. Said captain snored on the grassy deck as Sanji replayed the day's events in his head. No woman should be treated like that. He hadn't seen her the rest of the day, but she should still be in the cavern, safe from the storm. Puffing at his cigarette, he sighed. So many women must suffer as she does, and he wished there was something he could do to save all of them. His eyes turned to hearts as he thought of all the pretty women thanking him.