Hello everyone, thanks to all of you who read my last story. It was heartwarming to get such a positive response. I thought I should introduce the plan for this series, as I said nothing about it in the first story.

So for starters, I would like to make a collection of one-shot stories that builds pleasantly upon the One Piece world. The aim is to enjoy the feeling of the world expanding a bit, while still trying to stay true to the characters behaviours and interactions.

I will jump all over the place in terms of timeline. This one for example is set during the timeskip. While the last, was five years after discovering the One Piece. The story after this one will likely be set eight years after discovering the One Piece. Despite this I would like for you to think of them as being in the same "universe", I will reference previous stories to build upon my take of the One Piece world.

I'm not going to change or assume any major plotlines, this is for the sake of longevity and the feeling of immersion. Things may occur in the Manga that contradict the story, however I'd like to avoid this as much as possible. As such, details like what the One Piece is and how it was acquired won't be talked about. Instead the focus will be on the strawhat's (LuffyxNami primarily) more intimate interactions.

In terms of how often I'll post, you can expect at least one story a fortnight, maybe two.

Anyway enough of the boring stuff. I hope you are as excited to read these as I am to write them! Favourites and follows are always appreciated. Please feel free to leave any sort of review, I enjoy reading them all, whether it's criticism, feedback or a compliment.

Lots of love to you all and enjoy the story!

- Snips

A Welcome Visitor

Luffy lay awake on a simple matt, his body warmed by a waning fire. He stared aimlessly at the stars above him.

The night enveloped Luffy. While Rayleigh had been on the island, he had been able to avoid getting lost in his own mind. There had always been questions to ask and lessons to learn. He had intentionally let his training consume him. But now, Rayleigh was gone and he had become painfully aware of how alone he was in this hostile land.

He rolled over, hoping that his discomfort was just physical and could be solved simply by repositioning his aching muscles. The movement did little however and he resigned himself to another restless night in the jungle.

He had always liked the jungle, he understood it. After all him, Ace and Sabo had grown up there. Back then, the jungle had been unanimous with brotherhood and adventure. Now the chirping of strange birds and the growls of large beasts only reminded him that he had no family left. Sure his grandfather and father were still alive but Garps position in the Navy and his Fathers estrangement meant he would never have normal relationships with them. Ace and Sabo had been like minded people. People who he could share his dreams, aspirations and fears with.

The last log in the fire finally burnt out and the soft glow of light faded away. He took this as a sign that it was time to try sleeping again and closed his eyes. His patience didn't even last a minute before he snapped them back open and grumbled. He lay like a starfish on the matt, scowling at the sky, as if it were somehow at fault for his restlessness.

"I want to see everyone again…." Luffy muttered to himself. His thoughts drifted to his Nakama, memories of their smiling faces and warm laughs filling his mind. "Only three more months." He whispered to himself glumly.

With sleep eluding him, Luffy decided the best course of action was a walk to the beach. He stood up and stretched, then placed his hands on his hips. "Which way was the beach again?" he mused, his head slightly tilted.

He replied to himself with a laugh,"Well it's an island so there would have to be a beach in every direction."

His navigation problems solved, Luffy wandered off the way he was already facing. He strolled through the palm trees and brush, his hands behind his head.

A cool breeze blew through his raven hair and was a welcome change to the scorching days the island was experiencing this week. He grinned to himself, despite his worries he still relished the feeling of being alive.

Luffy emerged onto the beach between two palm trees, he kicked off his sandals and buried his toes in the sand, feeling the warmth from the day still present in the grains. The frothy bubbles on the small waves crashing in front of him shone with silver light reflected from the moon.

He sat down and rested his head on his hands, staring out across the great expanse of ocean. Coming to the beach had seemed like a good idea but now that he was here, he wasn't sure what to do. Without anything to keep him busy, old memories dominated his mind. He flopped onto his back and groaned.

While staring across the beach, lost in thought, his eyes caught a small bright object glimmering in the sand. Thinking the mysterious item was better than the intrusive thoughts that accompanied boredom, he stood up and walked over to it. Bending down he realised it was a small silver coin. He picked it up and observed it briefly.

"Buried treasure?" he wondered. He thought about digging it up.

"Meh." he said tossing the coin over his shoulder and walking back to the edge of the jungle. He hardly got halfway there when he stopped abruptly. I bet Nami would like a pile of treasure he thought. He didn't stop to question his motivation, he preferred just to follow his impulses most of the time. He went back to where the coin had been and started quickly scooping out sand. He kept shoveling with all his might, his already sore body screaming in protest. When he finally stopped and looked up, Luffy found himself almost 10 metres down.

A small pang of disappointment hit him.

"Guess the coin just washed up from the ocean." He lay down, curling himself slightly to fit in the tight space. This hole seemed as good a place as any to try to get some sleep, especially with his sore arms not wanting to move.

The exhaustion overwhelmed him and he fell into a restless sleep. Images of a young Ace and Sabo ran through his dreams.

The two older boys were teasing Luffy by running away from him through a forest, their longer legs allowing them to easily lose him. Luffy called out desperately but they disappeared into the tree's. He walked around pleading them to come out, tears forming in his eyes. Just when he was about to start bawling, he heard his name being called.

"Luffy."

He spun around searching for the source of the sound.

"LUFFY!" the voice yelled, this time it was clear the voice was above him. He looked up but could only see blue sky.

"Luffy, wake up!"

Luffy's eyes snapped open, a small amount of sand irritating them. "Oh that's right I was at the bottom of the hole." He thought to himself.

"Luffy!"

Startled he looked up. Leaning over the edge of the hole was the outline of a woman's head, silhouetted by the starlight. Not responding he stretched his arms up to the edges and pulled himself up, landing neatly opposite the woman.

"It is you!" The woman exclaimed.

Without responding Luffy began pinching both his arms at once.

"You're not dreaming." The woman said with a grin.

Despite the assurance Luffy continued his pinching, staring blankly into her eyes.

The woman's grin turned to frustration. She stepped around the hole and using her fist like a club, gave Luffy a hard whack over the head. He fell butt-first onto the sand and grabbed the fresh lump on his head.

"Ouch!". He complained.

After the initial shock passed he rubbed the bump. It felt very real and very round. He took his hands off his head and slapped his fist into his palm.

"Ah! you must be the real Nami."

"Of course I am." replied Nami, only a small amount of annoyance left it her voice. Luffy stood up, facing his navigator, they both grinned for a moment. Then Nami leapt towards her captain, Luffy grabbed her mid air and pulled her into a hug. He grinned as he felt the warmth of his friend. The hug felt like a huge relief, then Nami's chest began to heave. A moment later tears spilled out onto his back.

"I am so sorry I wasn't there when….. I'm sorry I couldn't help you." Her words came out clearly but Luffy could feel her chest shaking against him.

"It's ok. There was nothing you could do. And I still have you and the rest of our Nakama."

Nami pulled herself off Luffy, then smiled softly and nodded.

"We should get away from the...er...hole… Why were you in a hole Luffy?" The boy laughed at Nami's question, a grin still plastered to his face.

"It's a boring story. Don't worry about it."

Luffy started walking up the beach. Nami follow behind, not bothering to push any further as she wiped the tears off her cheeks.

Luffy sat down at the edge of the Jungle, Nami joined him and they looked out into the ocean.

"How did you end up here?" Asked Luffy.

"For the past two years I've been studying weather science on a moving sky island called Weatheria. The Weatheria scientists have stopped here to get data on the island's weather conditions. Apparently there are 48 different seasons here."

Luffy nodded, "It gets pretty crazy. Does that mean you're going to stay for a while?"

Nami shook her head, looking disappointed. "Weatheria is powered by wind. Out here in the calm belt there is no wind, which means the island is running on energy from the weather ball. We can only stay here for a few hours before we'll need to head back and repower the weather ball. It's lucky me and Haredas flew straight over your hole though, when I saw it I thought someone might have left some treasure in it. I knew it was unlikely-." Nami raised a fist in determination, Berri's in her eyes "but I'd never let an unguarded treasure slip by me."

Luffy laughed and looked at Nami. "What a coincidence! Well I'm glad I get to see you anyway." He turned his gaze back out to the ocean, a more serious look on his face.

"Do you think everyone else will make it back in three months?"

Nami placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "I'm sure they will. I promise we'll all be there. We are like family."

Luffy nodded but Nami could tell he wasn't totally reassured.

"Give me your shirt Luffy."

Luffy looked down at his top. He was wearing the same yellow vest that he'd worn in Marineford. Hancock had provided him with new clothes but he still used this shirt on occasion. Despite the beating it had taken during the Summit War, it was in surprisingly good shape and he'd seen no reason to throw it away.

"Why?"

Nami rolled her eyes "Just give it here."

Luffy shrugged and complied, pulling the vest over his head. Nami took it and then reached into the backpack she was carrying. She removed a small sewing kit and got to work dismantling the fabric. Luffy seemed concerned his property but let it be.

While Nami worked away with her needle and thread, the two of them sat in the night. They shared stories about their training and dreamed of the future. Luffy showed Nami his haki and tried his best to understand when she explained the weather science she had been learning. Having company cheered Luffy up considerably, even when they both just sat silently.

After a time nami stopped sewing. She inspected her creation and then turned to Luffy.

"Stand up and close your eyes." Luffy complied, grinning the whole time.

With his eyes shut, the only things in Luffy's world were the sound of waves crashing and Nami's soft breathing. He felt a tug on his waist.

"Ok. Open them."

Luffy followed the instructions and looked down. Tied around his waist was a bright yellow sash. An end had been tucked through at the front and dangled down by his left leg.

"OOOOOOO! This is perfect for a pirate!" exclaimed Luffy excitedly. Nami stood a couple of meters in front of him, admiring her handiwork.

"Mhmm." She replied.

She walked a couple of steps closer "This sash is a promise. I know the rest of the crew aren't here, but I'm sure they'd all agree with me saying this. We'll definitely be there at Sabaody. Every single one of us."

Luffy nodded, a sparkle in his eye.

Nami gave Luffy one more satisfied glance before looking up at the sky. The stars had moved a long way since they had first sat down and dawn was just around the corner.

"I need to meet Haredas at the pickup location or I'll be stuck here. We both need to finish our training so we are ready for the New World." With a determined look on his face, Luffy nodded and raised his hand. "Let's meet again when we are ready to take on the whole world."

Nami matched the boys determination and high fived his open palm "Yosh." She said with a smile.

With the exchange complete Nami grabbed her bag and ran off into the jungle. Luffy watched her until the tree's totally obscured her, then flopped down onto the sand.

"Only three more months." He mumbled drowsily, a small grin lingering on his face.

He closed his eyes and a warm sleep enveloped him immediately.