There was finally some time to document their adventures since Fishman Island. Nami hoped that she had mentally stored the amount of adventures and details sufficiently for the log book. The Fishman Island didn't get the newspaper, so she didn't have dates of anything to put down, just vague guesses going by the two year meet-up date on Archepelago.

Nami tried to get as much written as she could to free up some mental space for what she would need for future references. She tried to do as much justice as possible to the sheer magnitude of their recent adventures since the two year absence. By the time she had a few pages written, Nami's head was spinning from the recollection of memories, really amazed that they had even survived half of the journeys she put down. She put the feather pen down and left the book open to dry. A hand rubbed her temples in her haze as she got up from the chair. "Robin, I'm going to head to the kitchen for a bit..."

Robin glanced up from her book, brow furrowing a little. "Are you feeling okay?"

Nami gave a reassuring smile, hand still on her temples. "I got a little carried away in my writing. I'll just have Sanji go make me something and I'll be back."

Nami headed to the kitchen, knowing Sanji would probably be there. The afternoon was late and he was most likely getting started on dinner. "Good afternoon Sanji-kun. Can you get me some coffee please?"

Sanji turned to Nami's voice and watched as she sat down at the bar. "Nami-san, are you not feeling well?"

Nami sent him a comforting smile. "I just have a little headache."

Sanji thought for a second and then nodded, mostly to himself. "I know just the thing to fix you right up Nami-san. Just a moment."

Nami idly watched Sanji gather some random vegetables and fruits from his pantry as she swung a leg leisurely from the bar stool. She absently listened to him work for a while before she spied a newspaper spread out on the table. She got up and collected the sheets, reorganizing them in their ordered pages and began catching up on the world. Sanji soon set a green-colored concoction in front of Nami. Nami started sipping the drink, eyes on the paper.

Nami sat for a while in the kitchen, wanting to finish the newspaper. She actually managed to get through the whole thing in peace and quiet! Nami felt better by the time she'd finished both drink and paper. She folded it nice and pretty and set it on the front as she stood to leave. Dinner would be ready soon and she wanted to finish a few more entries since she was almost caught up. Her eyes happened to catch the date on the top. Nami paused and stared for a while.

…Oh…was it that time again?

The whole atmosphere suddenly changed and the room disappeared. Her eyes locked on the date, unblinking and unable to look away.

'How quickly time goes…' She mused.

"Nami-san? Is something wrong?"

Nami jumped to attention and gave a hasty chuckle and wave in Sanji's direction. "Ah hah, hah. It's nothing Sanji-kun. Thanks for the drink. I'll be going now." Nami abruptly spun and ignored Sanji's questioning face. She quietly clicked the door shut behind her and leaned against it. She stared at the sky for a while, giving a few quiet sighs as she did so.

Where did the time go? Nami didn't realize how busy they had been and how much she had forgotten today. That seemed like such an impossible task, given the gravity of today and its meaning. Nami's mind flashed back through time until she arrived at that day. The screams in her head still rang loud and clear. The words and threats echoed in her ears.

"I love you."

Eventually, Nami headed down the stairs to the grassy deck and plopped onto the swing and slowly rocked. She was lost in decade old memories and the rocking of the boat for a while until a few leaves blew off the tree into her vision. Nami watched them scatter across the lawn for a bit until she stood. She headed straight up to the top deck of the ship and stopped in front of a different pair of trees. These trees sprouted fruit occasionally and Nami always had to keep Luffy from taking them all. She slowly walked to the trunk and reached up, gently picking a coveted fruit from a branch. Nami carried it as if it would break and walked to the nearby railing. The only thing she could see besides the ship was water as far as the horizon.

"Hey Nami! There you are! Sanji said it's time for dinner already."

Nami jumped and fumbled to keep the mikan in her hands. She whipped to Luffy's advancing figure, noting his grin. She rushed back from the past with a hurried smile although she was confident he wouldn't notice anything was wrong. Luffy was the only one would could smooth ruffled feathers of their lives so effortlessly, but he didn't notice any other detail unless you hit him over the head with it.

Nami stared at Luffy half listening as he practically ordered her to the kitchen with him. She had no real appetite, but she wasn't going to go around sharing today with anyone by publicly announcing she wasn't going to have Sanji's cooking. That would just send Sanji running to her side and not leaving until he felt she was better. Nami quietly nodded and followed Luffy to the kitchen, making a random lie about having found a mikan at the base of the tree when she was questioned about it. It was a horrible lie because her mikan trees never randomly dropped fruit, but no one said anything.

Nami managed some food, somewhat forcefully, and was the first to get up from the table when most everyone was done and leisurely chatting. She hated leaving food leftover because it was really good and Nami knew that was Sanji's biggest issue as a cook. "Um, Sanji-kun...do you think you could put this away for later for me? I'm not very hungry tonight, but I know how you hate us wasting food out on open water."

"Is something wrong Nami-san?"

Nami pasted on a quick smile. "No, no! I'll finish it later. Please?" She passed the plate off to the cook. "Sorry I didn't finish it. It was good though."

"Don't worry Nami-san. If you want it later, just come get me when you're hungry and I'll heat it up for you."

"Thanks Sanji-kun. And...can I maybe get a bottle of some wine and a two cups please?"

Sanji turned with a raised, curly brow. "What's wrong Nami-san? Why do you want alcohol?"

"I just...felt like a drink…that's all."

"Nami-san, you're acting kind of weird. Are you feeling okay?"

"I'm fine Sanji-kun. The alcohol please?" Sanji didn't attempt any more questions and silently handed the items over. "Thanks Sanji-kun." Before he could ask any more questions, Nami made a beeline for the stairs to the top deck, ignoring Luffy's questions of where she was going. She didn't want to explain anything to anyone else. This was her night of remembrance, not theirs, and although this crew was the main reason Nami was here, this day was not their concern.

Nami stopped next to her trees again and sat down in front of a trunk. She opened the bottle and poured two cups of wine. She set the first one at the base of the trunk and then poured herself one. "Ten years already huh? I'm sorry I wasn't able to do this more often, but I know you'd forgive me for being busy." Nami's eyes softened as she stared at the wine in the offering. "I hope you're doing well..." Nami quickly downed the wine before tears got the better of her. She poured a second cup and clinked it against the offering in the silence. "Cheers."

"May I inquire as to whom passed away?"

Nami spit her drink out and almost choked on the rest. After she was done coughing, Nami whipped to find Brook quietly closing the hatch to the kitchen. Nami blushed and swiftly poured herself another drink. "How do you know someone died?"

"Nami-san, I more than anyone else on the crew know an offering to the dead when I see one." Brook sat a short distance away on the wood floor and watched the navigator down the small glass. "May I inquire as to whom passed away?" He repeated.

Nami stared at Brook with an even face for what seemed an eternity, unblinking. "No one you'd know." She finally mumbled, looking away.

Brook hummed thoughtfully and tapped his cane against a leg bone idly. "I doubt I'd know most anyone any of you know since I got here last. But I hope you would indulge me a little information into your past if you don't mind."

"Girls have to be strong. Don't worry if you're alone."

Nami stared at her glass of red wine in silence, occasionally swishing it around in a circle in the cup. Red, it was a fitting color for more than one reason. "My mother used to be a marine."

Brook's head tilted. Nami a pirate with a mother as a marine? "Was she killed in action?"

Nami's head shook. "She USED to be...when I was born she quit the marines. She brought us home and raised us."

Brook was still at a loss to understand this glimpse into Nami's past, but he realized that to speak of the dead, especially when Nami snuck away by herself so no one would know, meant it was a touchy subject. "Us?"

"My sister and I. From what I know, she found us on an island. I don't remember any of it though." Nami drank slowly from the latest glass as the wine was starting to affect her senses. She noted the bottle was almost half gone at this point. "I didn't even know what day it was today until I saw it on the local paper. I assume it's from today at least. I don't know how many papers you would get in the New World with such weather." Nami paused for a while and stared at the glass. "She had the most interesting hairdo. Same color as this wine."

Brook listened quietly. He never said a word. He didn't even move. Nami almost wondered if he had fallen asleep like Luffy tended to do when long stories cropped up. Nami snuck a few glances his way, seeing she had his full attention. She was kind of thankful that he was still paying attention because if he wasn't she was going to hit him over the head with the wine bottle and leave for her room. She didn't really want to go sharing her life's story, but Brook was definitely the one person she could talk to about today. He knew more about death than any of them on the ship, even if they all lost someone important in their lives. It was kind of a comfort to have him nearby actually. Despite the perverted advances, Brook really was a gentleman in spirit and he was giving her all the graces he could offer.

"When you keep living, many good things will come your way."

"Hey...Brook... What's the land of the dead like? Did you go to hell or heaven when you died? Does it exist?"

Such a loaded question. Brook's eye sockets looked to the starry sky above in silence. "I did go to the land of the dead. Most of those memories are fragments mainly because it's been so long. I have only a vague recollection of that time long ago." Brook pointedly looked Nami's way. Nami met his eye sockets. "One good thing about time is despite it taking away what you love, some of those bad things can be forgotten while the good times continue."

"Don't hate the world in which you were born."

Nami's lips sardonically twitched. The sound of a single bullet echoed in her ears. "I wish you were right."

"May I inquire as to how she died?"

Nami's face darkened. "Arlong and his fishman pirates invaded our island. She was killed because she couldn't pay the amount of money he demanded for our lives. She was killed ten years ago on this day."

Brook didn't say anything and Nami was thankful. She didn't want him saying he was sorry for her loss. She didn't want him to calm the hate down that laced through her words like venom. She was glad that Brook had the tact and wisdom enough to not speak at a time like this. He posed his questions well and they were properly timed. Nami was grateful. She was glad to see he hadn't decided to bring his violin with him, as he was prone to do. Brook was often times cheerful and tried to make everyone happy with his music. Although it'd been a decade and most of the horrible feelings had subsided, Nami didn't feel like equating happiness to the tragedy.

Nami grabbed the bottle and poured herself another drink. She didn't bother sipping it this time and hoped the alcohol would burn away some of her hate as it burned her throat.

Not even a few seconds after Nami managed to swallow the drink there was the sound of sudden wailing. Nami and Brook jumped and looked around. Brook stood and walked to the noise. "Oh my Franky-san, what are you doing down there?"

"I'm not crying if that's what you mean!"

"No, I didn't mean that. You were listening in?"

"I'm not crying! I wasn't listening in I swear! I just came outside for a bit is all!" In one good leap, Franky joined the duo on the top and quickly plopped down next to Nami and her trees. "Nami~! That's so sad! Your mom sounds like she was such a great woman! You're such a great daughter to pay tribute to her!"

'Not listening in huh?'

Nami dumbly nodded and stared at Franky's animated face. She hadn't cried in years since she was freed from Arlong's hold and it was offsetting that Franky was openly weeping for her. She didn't hold it against him though; she wished she could cry over it sometimes, but she had banished the ability to cry a long time ago. Tears didn't bring back the dead.

"I'll drink with you! Let's toast your mom!" Franky opened his chest section and grabbed a bottle of cola from it. He held it up in ready to clink against Nami's glass. Nami stared at the drink for a while, still feeling off-kilter for Franky's interruption. She gained her wits and poured herself another drink, clinking it to Franky's container with a smile growing.

Despite her not inviting him, Franky's presence wasn't unwelcome. She forgot that he had also lost someone right before his eyes and had suffered years of damage after that. Despite their age difference and situations, they had a lot in common on this topic. Except that Nami already knew the story of Franky.

Nami let Franky's emotions wash over her and heal her solemnness a little bit. She felt a little more alive despite today. She had lost her mother on this day and would never forget it, nor would she forgive. But it was nice to be able to share some good memories with a few crew mates at least.

When Nami noticed Brook again, she saw he had another bottle in one hand and a glass for himself in the other. She turned to be able to see the two of them and the three of them sat together with their retrospective drinks. They clinked together again and Nami described the better memories of her village, her sister Nojiko, her mother Bellemere, and what happened when Luffy 'invaded' her village.

"Always maintain the strength to keep smiling."