Author's Note: I am slowly starting to get Vivian introduced to all our beloved StrawHat Pirates. After that this slow bit, the fun will begin! I will continue to attempt to post a chapter at least once a week, most likely during weekends, but I as of now I have chapters to spare. I am not one to spurn muse whenever I should happen upon it. Much like my ratings, my story will follow the perspective of several of the StrawHat pirates. We are mostly omniscient as of now, but in later chapters I will specify which third-person view the chapter is following. As always, reviews are encouraged, as are suggestions and ideas!

Chapter rating: T- mild language

Disclaimer: I have no claim to this beautiful world of pirates... only guilty of foreshadowing a little.

Paranoia and the Misfit Pirates

They were at a sudden crossroads, Nami and Robin standing at the door and staring at the blanket-covered female that sat on the cot to their left. It had all been going so well too. They'd gotten Vivian's name, ascertained she wasn't one of those abhorrent Celestial Dragons, and even managed to get her to admit she was hungry. The moment they mentioned leaving the room for food, however, made the woman balk.

"I can just… wait here. Right?" Vivian sounded both hopeful and terrified, the soft vibration of the blanket alerting the pirate-women to her returning trembling. Nami heaved a great sigh, hands resting on her curving hips.

"Vivian, I can't imagine what sort of things you went through on that island, but I told you before, the guys won't hurt you. They can be dumb, perverted, weird, muscle-bound morons sometimes, but they aren't bad." Another five-star seal of approval from the navigator didn't seem to help convince the wounded female any. Robin coolly chimed in, voice almost playful.

"Captain-san is going to want to meet you."

Nami nodded. "He may be stupid when it comes to a lot of things, but he is our captain, and we have to let him know you're onboard," said the orange-haired woman, sighing when Vivian seemed to pale at the notion, though it was hard to tell with the girl so white already.

"Come on. It'll be dinnertime soon, so everyone'll be in a good mood. You can eat, we'll get everyone introduced, and then Luffy can decide what do to, 'kay?"

Vivian seemed to swallow her tongue, eyes wide before she unfroze, rasping voice finally speaking up. "I… StrawHat Luffy, you mean?"

Robin chuckled at the girl's reaction. "Indeed. You've heard of him, I take it?"

She rested her chin on her knees, eyes settled on the ground and brow pensive. "The World Nobles don't like him overmuch," she whispered, showing no signs of moving.

The archaeologist smiled. "I should think not."

Nami, on the other hand, rested her hand on the door handle. "If you aren't going to move from there I am going to bring everyone here. In this crowded little room. All at once. Right now."

The raven-haired femme froze, jaw clenched and eyes squeezing shut. The sound of Nami turning the door handle made her jerk, some spasm of panic rushing through her body.

"O-okay! I'll go! I'll… I'll go." The girl unfolded herself as the navigator offered Robin a silky smirk that was worn only by the most satisfied of felines. Fitting, for a cat-burglar.

When Vivian stood, she was shorter than even Nami, her 5'4 making everyone next to her seem like a giant. She cast her questing gaze around the medical room, quite obviously looking for something specific. Before either of them could offer assistance she ghosted forward, snatching a damp, tattered-looking robe off the unlit lamp on the back wall. The blanket fell, but the women couldn't see much of the wounded female other than her black dress… only, they very quickly realized what they were looking at wasn't a dress at all.

"Jeez you have long hair!"

The mussed up, black tresses trailed almost down to the floor, their frizzed ends brushing against her heels. Considering the knotted mess it was, Nami could only guess at the nightmare they would have to go through to return it to its original state. "Alright. After dinner, we are cleaning you up. Thoroughly. How does a nice, hot bath sound, huh?" Something inside her giggled at the challenge this roughed up girl presented. The other part of her told herself to stop being such a 14-year-old girl about it.

"A bath sounds… nice." Vivian sounded both cautious and sceptical, as if this was all too good to be true and she were expecting the rug to be torn out from beneath her feet at any moment. All without truly believing they were perfectly nice people to begin with. She pulled on the over-sized bundle of ragged cloth, flipping up the hood of her robe and turning to face the pirate women. Robin quirked a brow at her choice of attire, the material covering nearly all of her, hiding the girl from view. Only her face and the top of her bare feet were visible when she moved. She took a shaky breath before stepping forward, gravitating toward Robin.

Nami shook her head, wondering just what had happened to her on that island.

When she opened the door, she jumped as a brown-furred body fell to the floor with a squeak before scrambling to its hooves and hid backwards at the doorframe. Nami tsked at Chopper. "Eavesdropping? Really?"

"I! I wasn't eavesdropping! I was just making sure she was okay!"

"Whatever. I'm glad you're here. Vivian?"

The girl jumped at being addressed, curiously peeking at the reindeer from Robin's side.

"This is Tony Tony Chopper, our doctor. He's the one who picked you up. Chopper, this is Vivian…?" The brown-eyed woman looked back at her, questing for a surname, which she got.

"Hargrove. Vivian Hargrove. It that…?" She turned to look at Chopper, something changing on her face as she drew closer to him. "…are you… um… tanuki?" She fumbled over the words, a slight blush rising over high cheekbones in embarrassment. She was kneeling now, almost face to face with the young doctor, fingers extending toward him in a curiously slow fashion. Chopper immediately became flustered, irritated at the common confusion.

"I am a reindeer! A reindeer!" He had stopped his 'hiding', stomping his little hoof on the ground. Much to the girls' surprise, Vivian didn't so much as flinch. The ghost of a smile passed over her mouth, the fleeting spirit warming her face rather than haunting it. She slowly but surely reached forward, picked Chopper up, and buried her face in his fur, hood sliding off and arms gently encircling him. He froze at first, unsure as how to take this sudden snuggling. At Nami's and Robin's girlish giggles, he figured he should be putting up some sort of protest. "H-hey! What do you…"

A soft, mild voice caught his attention, muffled by his fur. "…so cute…"

His protests died as he processed the words, before immediately wiggling in joyful shyness. "That doesn't make me even a little happy, asshole! Hee hee~"

If the crude language surprised Vivian, she didn't show it, happily hugging her new acquaintance as if he'd been her personal teddy bear all her life. Nami shook her head. Apparently even their jumpy guest was incapable of fearing their 'tiny tanuki' of a doctor. He was certainly the least threatening of the males aboard the ship, making him an ideal starting point.

"Coming with your patient, Chopper? We're going to the dinning room to get some food."

He snapped out of it long enough to frown in confusion. "Out this way? But can't you just use…?" He looked at the door at the back of his sick bay, the portal a direct passage to the kitchen. Nami shook her head.

"Just getting some fresh air. Showing Vivian around. It's probably going to be awhile before we find another island, so she might as well know her way around the ship.

The mention of her time aboard the pirate vessel seemed to sober Vivian some, the former slave releasing Chopper and rising to her feet. The movement wasn't a profound one, by any means, but Robin found it was always the little things that told the most about people. There were bandages of the woman's feet, but they were old. Much older than the ones administered by their friendly doctor. But rather than stained with the rust of old blood, they were dusted in dirt, meaning they were worn in lieu of actual footwear. And then there was the way she moved itself. The movement was sharp and abrupt, genuine nervousness of them seeping into her actions, though the efforts themselves were precise, no energy wasted. Not to mention that if it weren't for the fluttering of her large robe she would be silent. Robin observed her quietly while Chopper explained to Nami just how he'd happened across her.

They were trademarks of a hunter. A poor hunter, given her apparently fearful nature, but a hunter none-the-less.

The sun was starting to get low in the sky, stretching their shadows out into tall, warped doppelgängers that wriggled at their toes. Perhaps that was the reason Vivian looked so jumpy as they walked around to the main deck. The uncertainty of the unknown is what made things so frightening, after all. Never knowing what was around the corner in this strange boat, filled with even stranger people. Pirate people, no less. Her life was in the hands of notorious sea-farers known for the strength of their crew.

It was safe to say the law deck wasn't something she had been expecting.

"Welcome to the Thousand Sunny," Nami supplied, resting her forearms on the railing as Vivian's eyes widened once more. In awe, this time, rather than fear. The blades of grass quivered as a cool evening wind slipped through them, teasing the edges of the clothes laying about, nearly dry by now. The guest leaned over the railing, craning her head to watch the swing lazily move against the flirting wind, leaves shivering and shaking as if chilled by the breeze. A similar sound drew her gaze back and up, finding the tops of Nami's mikan bushes. Aforementioned navigator didn't bother hiding her smile. Sunny was a great ship, and she was proud to show it off to such an effect.

A figure exited the door to the men's quarters on the other side of the ship, stopping when it caught sight of them. "Oh there you are, Chopper. I was looking for you. It's almost dinner, so you guys better get down before Luffy eats all… the…" The closer Usopp got, the more he realized there was someone there who he didn't recognize. Which was an oddity, considering they were in the middle of an ocean and visitors weren't exactly a thing. "Who is that?"

The sound of the male voice had Vivian freezing up, reminding Nami of her assumed fear of men. Chopper seemed to be an exception, if only for the moment. His Brain Point form was adorable and tiny, but there was no guarantee she would react the same way to his Heavy Point. She vaguely considered asking Chopper to change, just to see how she would react, but decided against it. There was no need to stress the poor girl out while she was injured. For now, anyway. Nami patted Vivian's forearm with her hand, both reassuring the woman and establishing the subject of Usopp's curiosity.

"This is Vivian. That bullet Luffy bounced hit her, so Chopper fixed her up. Is everyone in the galley?"

Usopp nodded. "Yeah, they are… bullet? When..?" The sniper's mouth then widely gaped, eyes riveted to Vivian's form. "Wait, you mean back on Sugar Town? She's been here the whole time?!"

Nami mostly ignored him, addressing the cloaked woman. "Thanks. Come on. We might as well get this over with, ne?"

Vivian readjusted her hood, tugging it down over her eyes, hiding herself from view. Nami exchanged a glance with Robin before shrugging, taking her silence as determination, steering her towards the lighted, noisy kitchen. Robin chuckled softly.

"Everyone watch your fingers, lest they be snatched away and eaten."

Word Count: 1916
Muse Source: Because of You- Kelly Clarkson

"Because of you I find it hard to trust
Not only me, but everyone around me.
Because of you, I am afraid."