Fun fact I forgot to mention: Nori written with this Kanji 典 means rule or law. He he.

I'm super glad you guys like the fact that she's a cyborg 3 *love you all*

Hope you enjoy!

What is the worth of worldly treasures

That we're boasting we can find,

If we still all need a compass

Just to get around our mind?

- Erin Hanson

"Hold on a second! I never said we had a deal. What's in it for me?"

"In it for you? You clear one debt owed to me."

"And for how long do I need to be a part of your crew?" She saw his left eye twitch a little. She was getting on his nerves. Good! The bastard was as infuriating as he was handsome.

"Until I release you from it." Ah, he was the devil!

"That's not very reassuring…" He was looking at her with menacing eyes, trying to be all scary. Truth be told, his powers freaked her. But in the close proximity, with Nori right behind him watching their exchange of words, she was confident she could kill him. She could've also done it when he was pinning her to the ground. Poor, poor pirate. Never underestimate a cyborg! She would teach him that lesson sooner or later.

But she hadn't killed him. The reason? Well, if she was being completely honest with herself, joining a crew didn't seem so bad. She tried it once before. Didn't go so well when the crew made her walk the plank. Apparently she had freaked them out when a screwdriver popped out of her middle finger. But if the rest of the Heart Pirates were at least as crazy as their captain and didn't regard her as an abnormality, she could get to like it there. Working on a submarine was also appealing. Her barquentine was and would forever be special – her first vessel, but she always wanted to travel beneath the sea.

The crew's name was also resonating with her. Heart Pirates! Thesa liked it. Most pirate crews had such boring names… using the last name of their captain or obnoxious words like Mustache, Beasts or Pumpkin. She wondered how Trafalgar came to choose 'heart' as a label for his crew.

A very small reason for the 'Surgeon of Death' still drawing breath was his choice of words. 'You intrigue me.' It was the closest thing to a compliment she got from a stranger that knew her secret. The last guy that saw her arm turning into a rifle ran screaming and never looked back. She had trouble picturing this particular pirate run away from anything. The way her looked at her, like she saw interesting rather than disgusting, was probably contributing to her decision.

But did she really want to get caged in a submarine, leagues below the surface, with the owner of that sadistic smile? Sure, she could surprise him with another attack and take him out. But that was probably going to work only once more. And she was good at assassinating people, not brawling her way through his crew when they'd see their captain lying on the floor. Nori could help, but she'd be the first one to get killed by the angry mob. That was worse than losing her freedom.

Thesa sighed, feeling the impatient and irritated glare of the Supernova. Her thoughts went haywire. What did she want to be in the end? A mercenary? A pirate? A killer? A mechanic? Well, if she really had the opportunity, she would have loved to become a seamstress - sewing was a passion of hers. But that ship sailed a long time ago, there was just too much blood on her hands. And if that were true, wasn't it due for her to change professions?

"Fine, I'll join." His eyes widened for a moment and her smile deepened. "I'll need some accommodations, though." She saw the vein in his forehead pulse as he closed his eyes and took a long breath.

"You didn't have much of a choice in the matter, but I'll amuse you. What do you want?"

"A room of our own first of all. I have a lot of things that I have to bring here from my ship and Nori already takes a lot of space as it is." It took him a moment to answer, changing his focus from Thesa to her panther, then back at her. When he spoke, the words were barked between his teeth.

"That can be arranged."

"And I won't be taking orders from anybody but you." Somehow, after the words were uttered, she regretted them. Probably because of the way his face lightened up, his eyes glistering with something she identified as mischief.

"I never expected you to."

"Hm, good! Well, that will be it for the moment. We should get to my ship first, I need to fix my hand." She was instantly before him, a nauseating feeling making her dizzy. How did she get there? Or was it he who moved towards her? Was it his creepy power? His tattooed fingers latched around her throat and she heard Nori growl dangerously. His piercing eyes were glaring daggers at her, his smile faded into thin line. Oh, he was so serious if was almost amusing. It wasn't like he was going to kill her after pressing her to join his freaking crew. She lifted her head defiantly and smiled. "Do we have a problem, Captain?" The muscled in his jaw lightened at the use of his title.

"I really hope you understand your place here. You're my subordinate. I give orders to you and you follow them, not the other way around. Is this clear in that little head of yours?"

"Transparent!" His brows furrowed, but he let go of her. Damn, he sure had a strong grip. Thesa made a mental note to get back on him if he bruised her neck. Accidentally, of course. "So, what now? Do I sign a contract? Make a pact? Bring you the heads of three Satan worshippers? Oh, oh, do I get a tattoo?" She loved tattoos. She had dabbled with the idea of getting one since she left her hometown, but she ended up with just a few small ink works on the silicon skin that hid her metal arm. That 'skin' was long replaced by new grafts.

"None of that will be necessary." His back was turned to her, as he cleaned and placed back the tools he used to stitch her wound.

"So, just lithe that? I'm part of your crew now?"

"Basically." Well, that was lame. He was meticulously cleaning and setting each utensil in its designated place. Thesa watched him with interest. There was a glimpse of the calm doctor beneath the crazed pirate, one that she had also noticed when he was tending to her wound. He seemed so… dedicated, like he wasn't doing it out of necessity, like he enjoyed it. She couldn't help but ask.

"Why are you a pirate?" She saw his hands stop abruptly. She wasn't really expecting him to answer. After all, why was she a mercenary? Why was anyone anything? Because life lead them there; it was that simple. Shit happened to people all the time and it didn't do so because of them. It happened to them, took them be surprise and threw them on a whole new path they couldn't change or even control.

"I have a mission of my own, mercenary." His voice was low. Thesa would have prodded further hadn't Nori started to rub her big head on his leg. His hand lowered slowly to pet her and she pushed her hear into his palm. Traitor!

"Oh, but I'm a pirate now!" She decided to lighten the mood. She really didn't know what to make of the panther's behavior. She was used to her ignoring people, not purring around them. But if she trusted Trafalgar, Thesa could at least give the guy the benefit of the doubt.

"My bad, pirate."

"Much better."

As he finished doing his thing, Thesa stared around the room. It looked to her like every other infirmary she'd seen: a row of beds on one wall, the operating table in the middle, cabinets and drawers, binging lights. All white, all sparkly clean. The only difference between that medical room and all those others was the doctor. As if sensing her thoughts were turning on him, he spoke, his voice startling her.

"Come, I'll present you to the crew."

Before leaving the room, Thesa snatched a roll of bandages and wrapped it around the ripped 'skin' on her wrist. She had to get to her ship and replace the grafts, but apparently her new captain didn't see that as a priority. Trafalgar sent her a disapproving look as they walked side by side though the narrow hallway.

"You're not going to lie to my crew, are you?"

"Lie? My goodness, no!" Her head dropped to the side where Nori paddled along her, almost glued to her leg. "I'll just keep some things to myself. You know… for the first impression and all that jazz."

"They're not going to care about your arm." Oh, but it was a little more than just her arm. She shouldn't even be alive, she wouldn't be without all the tubes and gears and wires. Even if they might not think badly of her, the risk of being shunned again was real. She'd figure something out to tell them, Later. "Their navigator is from the Mink Tribe and they all love him. I'm sure they couldn't care less about you being a cyborg."

"I'll tell them when I'm ready. Please, don't say anything to them just yet?"

"Whatever." She was half expecting him to snap at her again, but he kept his cool, not sparing her another glance the entire way. They entered a large room filled with tables, which Thesa supposed was the dining hall. Heads turned in their direction. On a quick glance, she numbered about twenty people. They acknowledged their captain first, only after noticing her and her panther.

"Captain, do you want us to take her back on land?" She saw his smirk spread from the corner of her eye.

"No, Frey-ya here will be joining the crew. A with a wide variety of expressions morphed on each of their faces. Most of them were surprised, some were confused, some smiled her way, and a few looked troubled. Considering everything, all were normal reactions, she supposed. A man with brown-red hair that reached his shoulders and a funny looking hat got to his feet.

"It that wise, captain? With all that's being said about her…" Her eyes fell to the floor and she fidgeted with the ends of the bandage on her wrist – a habit she got whenever she felt analyzed and judged. All those pairs of eyes on her! All labelling her as different things without even knowing her… She felt dizzy, her cheeks burning hot. Nori bumped her head against her leg, assuring her he was by her side.

"I don't know, Shachi. She doesn't look all that evil up close."

"And she did save my life! It should count as something." Was that the bear talking? She couldn't lift her head, eyes glued to a dent in the metal panelling of the floor. The pirates started talking between them, each stating his opinion on the matter. Trafalgar's voice stopped the chatter.

"Regardless, she's our mechanic now. Make her feel at home." Thesa

He signalled the white bear and they both left the room, leaving Thesa and Nori with a whole bunch of strangers. She realized she was going to have to memorize a lot of names. She was horrible at it! She basically forgot a name the second someone finished pronouncing it.

A woman followed by a guy with a hat that spelled PENGUIN approached her. The woman spoke first.

"Hi, I'm Erin. It's nice to meet you. I'm so glad you joined. We can always do with more women around here." Thesa felt a tinge of jealousy; the woman was gorgeous. She had this amazing wavy red hair that fell past her chest, hazel eyes and a dust of freckles on her nose and cheek. Not to speak of her body, ample boobs, a thighs little waist and curvy hips – a work of art. And she was most likely all flesh and bone, unlike Thesa.

"They call me Penguin." The first thing Thesa wanted to do was peer under the hat to better assess his face. Besides the hat, the man was pretty nondescript, wearing the same orange boiler suits almost everyone had. There was a faint blush on his cheeks, but she couldn't see for sure. Well, the good part was she couldn't possibly forget his name, since he had it written on his head.

"Come sit with us. Are you hungry? I can get you something from the kitchen." The woman, Arin… Eris something, grabbed her by the shoulders and guided her toward the table. The remaining three people at the table looked at her with friendly smiles.

"Hi…"

"Oh, don't be shy. I'll introduce everybody. The mountain of muscles over there is Ryan." He was indeed muscular. His sleeves were cut short exposing his arms. He was cute, though, as he flashed a smile and waved his hand lazily. "Then you have Sam." Sam was scrawny looking, with perfectly styled hair and a jet white scarf around his neck. He nodded his head as a greeting and Thesa did the same. "Lastly, Micha, out cook." The first thing she noticed was his dimples, them the mop of curly brown hair and vivid green eyes. And as if he wasn't handsome enough, his deep voice also held a foreign accent.

"Finally a mechanic! And a cute one at that. It's nice to meet you Thesa. Hope you'll like it with us." He placed his elbow on the table and rested his chin in his palm. His eyes were looking her up and down and Thesa became a little paranoid. What was he searching for?

"Micha, stop that and go bring Thesa something to eat." He chuckled and got up from his seat. He was tall, probably towering over Trafalgar. Why was she using the captain as a frame of reference?

"Would you like something in particular?"

"Some chocolate would be great. Anything sweet really, but chocolate would be fantastic… if like… you have any." She became uncertain when the pirates at the table all raised an eyebrow at her request.

"Umm, I'll see what I can find." With that he turned on his heels and went through a door on the opposite wall. Thesa looked around the room at all the faces starring at her.

"Should I present myself of something?"

"No need, luv. They all know who you are." Scarf-dude waved his hand as if it was a small matter, but Thesa's stomach flipped. They didn't know her, they knew a bunch of rumors, fabrications of a murderous woman.

"You'll get to know everyone in time, don't worry." Red-hair placed a hand on her right arm in a reassuring gesture. She had the warmest smile Thesa had ever seen, one of those genuine smiles that made you want to hug the person. There was a small moment of silence before the woman spoke again.

"So, what made you join the crew?"

"Your captain."

"Isn't he lovely? He might not show it but he cares greatly for the crew. He's the best captain in the whole Grand Line."

"Um, yeah." Thesa was surprised. Not in particular that Trafalgar was a good captain, but by the fact that his crew seemed to love him. Even as the red haired woman spoke, Thesa saw how the others nodded their heads in agreement. Before she could inquire about the captain, the cook came back with 2 plates. One was set before her, filled with all sorts of cookies and pie. She would have stuffed her face with all of them if Nori hadn't purred at her side.

"I supposed your panther eats meat. Is it okay?" She saw the man was reluctant to place the plate so close to Nori so Thesa saved him the trouble, taking it herself.

"Oh, yes, thank you so much."

"No need, dear. We're all family here."

"So, Theresa, I'm dying to know how you came across the panther." It was the guy with the scarf that talked, as he placed his hand on the cook's.

"Well, it's kind of a typical story. I found Nori when she was a cub. She had fallen into a hunter's trap so I helped her get out of it. She followed me for days after that… "

"Aww, that's such a cute story. She must have instantly thought you as her saviour." Thesa didn't know what ran through Nori's head that day more than she knew what the panther was thinking on a daily basis. The one thing she knew, though, was that Nori helped her as much as she helped the giant cat. She remembered being so alone in the world before the feline decided she was going to keep her company. But she didn't feel like sharing all of that with the pirates yet, though they seemed really nice people.

"Yeah, we've been together ever since." Thesa grabbed a cookie and took a mouthful out of it. She almost moaned in delight when the sugar touched her taste buds. Heaven! She ate in silence as the pirates told them more about the crew, pointed at random people and saying their name as it Thesa was memorizing any of it. She was too focused on eating as much of those cupcakes as possible. Though she did notice again how some pirates didn't wear the orange suit, so she asked when these was an opening in the conversation.

"Will I have to get a boiler suit, too?"

"Well, it's not mandatory. But you'll see, after a while on the submarine, you'll want one."

"Why is that?" They exchanged a look between them and the woman giggled sweetly before answering.

"It's hard to explain, really. The ones you see without the suit are all new recruits, but I think the reason behind it is different for each of us. For me personally, it was a way to blend in with the crew. I was the only woman at that time and I didn't want them to act differently around me because of it." Thesa understood that better than anyone. Not the being the only woman part, but the need treated like the rest.

"As one of the first members of this crew, I can tell you for sure, we started wearing them when we had to

"When I put the suit on… it was like I finally belonged somewhere, you know?" The guy with the scarf had a dreamy look in his eyes, like he was reliving the moment the suit's zipper went all the way up and he was a proper member of the Heart Pirates. The cook's fingers tightened around the man's hand. Wait a second… What was going on?

"I just like the way it feels." Muscle man joined in the conversation and was approved by the cook.

"Preach. They're more comfortable than they look."

"And you can style them. Add a scarf here, cut some length there. The ladies like them super thigh as you can observe on our friend here."

"Stop it, Sam!" She was blushing furiously, highlighting her freckles. "At least I'm not showing half my boobs like some others…" Okay, so scarf guy was Sam. Sam, common, it was short and easy.

"Oh, that's the Erin I like. Be mean, girl!" Erin pouted and turned her head away from Sam, cheeks red like the dress Thesa was wearing.

"You'll have to get used to these two, they bicker all the time." Muscle man had an apologetic expression, his brows furrowed in sad manner. He was shoving a soft, kind side underneath all those ripped muscles. For some reason, he was incredibly cute that way. Thesa saw Erin smiling her way as if she knew what she was thinking. Well, women!

"Oh, look at Ryan playing a saint. As if you don't like it when she gets all flushed up and innocent." Ryan. This one was easier, Thesa's neighbor from home had a boy names Ryan with whom she used to play as kinds. She could remember this one. The big man's eyes widen in pure horror. His eyes darted towards the redhead before falling down, his ears turning the color of her hair.

"Stop picking on them before they stop talking to us." The cook jolted his elbow in Sam's ribs playfully.

"But, Micha, look at them!" Both Ryan and Erin were looking at a spot on the table, eyes cast down, faces as red as tomatoes. They were incredibly adorable. More importantly, the cook's name was Micha. Oh, Thesa was surely going to forget this one...

"Come on Thesa, I'll show you around." Before she could object - there were still four cookies on her plate - the other woman hooked her arm around Thesa's elbow and grabbed her away from the table. She thanked the stars it was her right arm. Nori got u with a yawn and followed after them.

As they were exiting the room, another woman walked past them, smiling sweetly, but didn't stop to greet Thesa or make her acquaintance. She just waltzed ahead of them, slightly bumping Erin's shoulder. The redhead groaned a little after her. She must have seen the ex-mercenary stare after the woman with curious eyes.

"Ugh, that's Cara. Don't mind her. She can be a bit of a snob." But Thesa wasn't looking after her because she was offended. If anything, she was offended by her beauty. Erin might have been gorgeous, but 'Cara' was a goddess. She had all the right to walk with her nose held high.

She had long dusty rose gold hair that fell all the way to her lower back. It was such an amazing color and it looked so soft and silky Thesa almost wanted to run after her and brush her fingers through it. From that one glance the woman spared the, she saw the woman possessed the most vibrant sky blue eyes. She was also blessed with the face of an angel and the body of a devil. Damn! Even Thesa, who drooled at the sight of men's' abs and their well toned arms, was tempted to look at those hips as she swung them seductively.

They walked silently for a moment, but Erin's good mood returned quickly. She showed around and Thesa tried hard to remember her way, but with every turn they took she realized every wall and door looked the same. There was nothing to distinguish the women's dorm from the men's, or the med bay, or even the captain's quarters. Every was made of nondescript metal. Until they reached the engine room. It was, as far as Thesa knew, the only door that had the handle at the bottom, sliding up when it was opened. She wanted to peer inside but Erin pulled on her arm gently.

"You'll have for that later. We still have to visit the control room."

"Say, I've been meaning to ask, how come I'm the only mechanic? I presumed there would be several on a submarine…"

"Well, we had one, but he was kicked out a while back."

"Why? You'd think a mechanic is indispensable here."

"He was a bit of a pervert and made inappropriate jokes, but nobody actually knows what happened. Rumor has it he had a quarrel with Cara and she went crying to the captain."

"Hmm, must have been some quarrel if Trafalgar risked going underwater without someone who can fix things if anything broke."

"The situation wasn't that dire, many men know how to repair stuff around here. Shachi was our mechanic replacement until you joined." Sha- who? Was she supposed to know the guy? Had they showed him to her when they were at the table? "I think he'll be helping you around actually. You know, until you know where everything is and stuff."

"That'll be great." Erin smiled at her and tightened her grip on her arm a little as they walked the corridors. She was nice, Thesa liked her. She talked a lot and was a ray of sunshine, a smile always plastered on her freckled face. She noticed the redhead was shorter than her, barely passing her shoulder. She wondered how many men were lining at her door, a petite, gorgeous red haired beauty who was ever warm and friendly.

When they reached the control room Thesa couldn't keep her lips from turning into a smile. There were double doors! Another room she was going to recognize. Yay! As Erin was explaining to her that not many people are allowed in there, Trafalgar exited the room. He had a bored almost tired expression on his face.

"Erin, are you showing our newest member around?"

"Yes captain. I was actually meaning to talk t you. We need another bed in the girls' quarters if Thesa will…"

"No need. I made other arrangements for her and her pet."

"Oh, I never considered Nori… Where will they be staying?"

"We're going to clear out the storage room on the second level."

"The one between the dorms?"

"Yes. Actually, can you handle that? Take Jean Bart and Ryan and some others to help."

"Sure, captain. I'll get to it." Erin waved her hand to Thesa and even petted Nori a little behind her ear. Thesa smiled, glad that her potential friend wasn't terrified by her companion. She turned to face Trafalgar.

"So, now that I have a room, when can I get my stuff?"

OK, there was a scene in the manga where more of the Heart Pirates are shown. And the second I saw the woman I was: 'You're gonna be my OCs friend!' But then I thought we're going to find out her name and things about her and I will hate it that she'll appear to be someone else in my story. And then as I was writing Erin, I got distracted by Pinterest... saw a picture of Cara Delevingne in all her beauty... and I thought it would be nice to add another female, possibly a bitchy one.

So I decided to invent a few characters of my own, though I generally hate adding more than one OC [ even Nori seemed like too much work in the beginning...] I'll mention more members, but you'll probably only 'see' [ as in read more about...] these 5 guys: Erin, Ryan, Sam and Micha, Oh and Cara, all in small doses, along with the Heart Pirates we already know, besides the magnificent Law : Bepo, Shachi, Penguin, Jean Bart. Unless you guys want more. Personally, too many OCs confuse me when I'm reading fanfics

Anyways, let me know what you think and if you want to find out more about the secondary OCs or if I should stick to Law x Thesa more.

[ Off to write the next chapter 'cause my nails be looking pretty - beige fading to white at the tips - on the black keyboard ]