Grand Line
"Hoist those sails! Secure the anchors! Someone strap Usopp to the mast before he jumps ship!" Nami gripped the hood of her jacket as the winds threatened to blind her. Rain pelted the deck of the Thousand Sunny as the crew ran around, tying down anything that wasn't already nailed down. Luffy scampered around the deck, laughing as a rogue barrel of Cola attempted to roll him up like a cooking pin. Franky struggled with the stubborn wheel, as Chopper tried to help him in his normal form, before remembering he could grow larger. Zoro was hanging from the mast, busy with the ropes, as salt water stung his face. Sanji was busy setting up tarps over the tangerine trees, in hopes of keeping his Nami-swan happy. Nami looked down at the log pose. The needle of the compass spun like crazy, unable to ascertain their position. She glared at the log pose, willing it to make up its mind before she figures out a way to disembowel inanimate objects.
"The log pose is fine, Nami-chan." Robin appeared next to her, holding onto her hat lest it flies off to a world unknown.
"Eh? What do you mean the log pose is fine? It's gone haywire!" Nami returned her glare to the log pose, tapping it with her finger.
"It's not the log pose, Nami-chan. It's the ocean." Robin gave her a small smile and looked back at the wild seas. "While it may not feel like it, the currents are actually spinning the Thousand Sunny so fast, it makes it seem like the log pose is broken. A really rare phenomenon actually." She watched the water's spit and smash against the boat with mild interest. "It's called the 'Sailor's Hysteria'. Many seafarers who don't know about it are tricked into disposing their 'broken' log pose, which leaves them hopelessly lost."
Nami watched Robin talk, waiting for her to continue, but the raven-haired woman simply stood there, watching the insane ocean with a serene gaze.
"Umm…Robin onee-sama…" she started weakly, "is there something in that story that tells us how to get out of here?"
Robin looked over at her, mildly surprised, and easily answered, "Nope."
Nami let out a sad sigh. The one person who she could really rely on was being no use at all, and the fact that the most reliable person was an ex-assassin who tried to kill them didn't make things any better.
FwumpNami looked up just in time to see Zoro land on his back. A gust of wind had picked him up off the mast, and smashed him into the grass on the deck. He slowly got to his feet, growling insults at the weather, and proceeded the long climb back to the unfinished knots. As if responding to the swordsman's challenge, the storm became even more violent, thrashing and bucking the Thousand Sunny. Another large gust of wind hit the ship, and this time, a flimsy black object was thrown across the deck, embedding itself into the wall, right next to Nami's head. Both women spun around and stared at the well-dressed skeleton, which was upside down and fit snugly into the small crater he had made in the wall. Brooke struggled with his predicament for a bit, but the constant gales simply forced him further and further into the wall. Eventually, he gave up; consenting to his situation, before turning a hollow gaze at Nami.
"Good afternoon Nami-san." The cheery voice was barely made over the howling of the storm. "It appears my buttocks have become stuck in the wall. Although as a skeleton, I do not actually have buttocks! Yohohohohohohoho!" The insane laughter prompted Nami to swivel around, and pretend everything were okay.
"Franky! How are thing's up there!" she yelled.
"Definitely NOT SUPER!" was the strained reply. "I'm losing control of my SUPER ship in this totally NOT SUPER STORM!" There was a sudden flash of light in the clouds, followed by a loud thundering. Suddenly, the currents calmed, the winds died, and the storm simply dissipated. Ignoring a struggling Brooke's confused 'Yoho?'s, She glanced back at the log pose. The needle was steady as it pointed to the northeast.
Problem.
The ship was facing southwest. They were effectively going backwards. Nami groaned and held her face in her hands. She resisted the urge to burst into tears. Making any progress on this ocean was a miracle per mile. And they were going backwards. Who knew how long they had been sailing in the wrong direction! And while they are redirecting, only about a billion other things can go wrong, pushing them even further back.
"Oh well…" Nami thought to herself, "What were you expecting with these half-wits…" She gathered all her remaining strength, and began shouting out orders. Her crew snapped out of their oblivious celebrating and rushed around, desperate to keep in line lest they unleash the fury of the she-devil. Except for Luffy. As always, Luffy was completely unaffected by the storm, Nami, and even the Cola barrel that was now resting peacefully where his spleen should be. As well as several other major organs. He nuzzled his head against the grass and flopped his legs against the ground. He waved his arms, trying to make a snow…grass…angel…thing. Nami pinched the bridge of her nose. This idiot right here was the source of half her stress. Luffy stopped rolling for a second as a heeled, open toed sandal slammed down next to his head. Luffy cocked his head quizzically at the shoe, and looked up to find an extremely aggravated looking Nami.
"Huh…wonder what's wrong with her…" Luffy hugged the barrel as he stared at Nami. "Oh, I know, maybe she's thirsty and wants me to share the Cola with her." Glad he figured out what was wrong with his navigator, Luffy happily hopped to his feet, holding out the barrel with a goofy grin on his face. Right before the barrel made contact with the girl's face, he seemed to reconsider. "But this isn't my Cola, so I really shouldn't give it to her." He had no idea how his careless thought had spared his life by mere centimeters.
"Hey Franky!" he called up, "Nami's thirsty and wants to know if she can drink a barrel of your Co-" A fist connected with his face as Nami threw all her strength into that one punch. He spiraled across the deck and connected with the figurehead, unceremoniously bouncing off the lion's mane, and falling into the ocean. She was somewhat able to make out Usopp accusing her of murder from his position latched to the ship's mast, as Chopper ran around in frenzy, trying to decide which was more important, the drowning captain, or the murderer. Finally deciding that Luffy should take priority over the escaped, thirty foot tall, bloodthirsty, homicidal, maniac/murderer, (it just turns out this way sometimes y'know? Blame the media) the little reindeer hopped onto the railing, and jumped in after his captain. Sure that either the cook, first mate, or a combination of the two, would save the two hammers; Nami turned her attention to the sky. She was able to make out dark clouds on the horizon, but the wind told her that there was nothing to fear. Nevertheless, she was taking no risks. This ocean was crazy enough as it is. No need to sit around for a storm they could have avoided.
"Navigator-san" Robin called out to her. "It appears we may have some company." She rushed over to the railing. Floating gently on the waves, right next to the Thousand Sunny, was a little dinghy. The sail bore a mark with a chest with two swords stuck in them, vaguely familiar.
"It doesn't seem to be an enemy, so just keep going, I suppose…" Nami glanced at the dark clouds nervously, "We should move as soon as possible." Robin looked at her questioningly.
"Why, what's the matter, Navigator-san?"
"Err," Nami scratched her face, "just a bad feeling, I guess." Suddenly, a voice appeared from behind them. And it wasn't Brooke, who was still stuck in the wall, and just as surprised by the voice as the women, letting out a startled squawk.
"If it's the weather you're worrying about, I'll tell you now, it's sunny skies and clear sailing for the next week." They spun around to confront the man, who was leaning against the wall. He was a monster, easily six feet tall and quite muscular. He had wild golden hair that fell past his shoulders, and his beard reached his chest. His chest stretched his ragged brown vest to its limits, and his pants were torn and wearied. His thick-soled boots had suspicious scratches on them. He wore a cowboy hat over his eyes, and a silver crucifix hung from his neck. From his belt, hung many small pouches, and one very, very large holster. He was bouncing a tangerine from one of Bellemere's trees, and took a large bite into it, eating the peel and all. He chewed satisfactorily, tangerine juices dripping down from his lips and becoming lost in the jungle of hair. In an instant, what remained of the crew had him completely surrounded. Robin had activated the Hana Hana fruit and had six arms sprout from the man's body, in an attempt to hold him down. Franky activated Weapon's Left and peered down the sights in his hand, zeroing in on his head. Even the confused and still upside down Brooke had his sword at the ready, and was trying his best to jab the man in the leg, although he was out of range.
"Who are you, and how did you get on our ship?" Nami asked in the best threatening voice she could muster.
"Umm," the man scratched his neck awkwardly, "I came from the boat?" He jutted a thumb at the dinghy. "Sort of just walked on board. Nobody really stopped me." He chuckled at the crew's stupefied looks. "As for who I am…" He raised his hat and grinned at Nami, "Well, why don't you see for yourself." His face came into view, revealing his hazelnut eyes with a twinkle in them, and it took a moment for Nami to realize just who was under the hat.
"Neko ojii-chan!" She cried out, dropping her Clima-tact.
"Neko ojii-chan?" Franky questioned. This man looked like just about anything but a cat.
"Yeah, Neko ojii-chan!" Nami said happily. "His name is Lion, but back in my village, all the kids just call him Neko ojii-chan." 'Neko ojii-chan' smiled sheepishly at his pet name. "What are you doing all the way out here Neko jii-chan?"
"Y'know, I'd love to tell you, I really would. But could you please ask your beautiful friend here to please stop killing me?" Lion tugged uncomfortably at the arms straddling his neck. "I like my neck the way it is, thanks."
"Oh!" Nami suddenly realized that while she was incredibly comfortable around this man, her nakama were not. "It's okay guys, he's not just an old friend. He's from the Merchant's Guild."
"Merchant's Guild? What's that?" Usopp piped up, still tied to the mast. Even as he asked, Robin's arms had already dissolved into flower petals, and Franky had become considerably more relaxed, snapping his hand back into place. Even the hyperactive Brooke had sheathed his sword, and was once again attempting to extract himself from the walls of the Thousand Sunny. Nami had already proceeded to throw herself into Lion's huge arms, and no one seemed to remember the lone sniper latched to the mast. "Wait, what? Guys, I don't think you should just let him go like that! I've got a really bad feeling about letting him walk around guys! Guys?"
"Relax Usopp." Franky chided him. "He's from the Merchant's Guild, isn't he? He's fine."
"Huh? Wait, what's the Merchant's Guild?"
"Really, Nami, getting us all worked up over the Merchant's Guild. I really thought our lives were in danger, although as I am already dead, I do not have a life! Yohohohohohohoho!" Brooke simply tugged at the walls as he tried to pull himself out of his predicament. Fortunately, the newcomer had already gripped him by the leg, apparently unfazed by the fact he was holding a skeleton, and with a swift pull, yanked Brooke out of the wall, and onto the grass deck.
"Like I said guys, WHAT IS THIS MERCHANT'S GUILD!?" Usopp struggled against his bonds, desperate to escape his nakama's insanity.
"The Merchant's Guild is exactly what it sounds like." A voice appeared beside him. Lion pulled a large dagger from its sheath on his back and the blade licked Usopp's cheek. A few strands of hair fluttered down from the side of his head as the blades edge sliced them off his temples. Usopp froze in fear. This was dangerous. This man was dangerous. Very very very very very dangerous. He was coming down with a bad case of We-should-kick-this-man-off-our-boat-right-now disease.
"We're nothing but a neutral party who sails the seas and travels the lands, selling to and buying from whoever is willing to barter with us." The knife left his face, and he could hear it whistling through the air, whispering stories to him about how it craved his blood.
"It's an unspoken rule to never attack a member of the Merchant's Guild. Whether you are pirate, marine, or anything in between." His hairs stood on end as he felt the blades presence descending towards his exposed back. Not even the thick mast would be able to save him from this man's blade. He winced as he heard the cut, expecting to feel pain and agony. But the only thing that greeted him was a light sawing noise. Soon, the ropes around him fell limply to the floor, and the man had sheathed his knife. He grinned at Usopp and held out his hand.
"The name's Lion. Purido Lion. Good to meet you, King of Snipers." Usopp gawked at the hand. Suddenly, he felt very weak. And very foolish.
"O-o-of course I know that, I was simply making sure everyone else did too!" He stammered. "After all, I am the Great Captain Usopp, King of Snipers, and leader of over three hundred thousand fighting men!" He shakily extended his hand. "As a show of my hospitality, I will give you the honor of shaking my hand. This is very rare, so make sure you treasure this moment!"
Lion smirked. "Honored, sire." He grasped the offered hand and gave it a firm shake with both hands.
"Very good! You have the qualities to become a wonderful servant! Do you have any inter-Eh?" Usopp stared at his hand. There was something in it. It resembled a rope. He leaned in, closely inspecting the foreign object. Yes, yes, this was definitely rope.
"Hold on tightly 'Your Majesty', the package is rather important." Lion leaned against the railing, watching. Usopp finally felt it. He had unconsciously been gripping the rope as hard as he could out of fear, and he was being dragged across the deck towards the wide, open seas.
"Uwagh!" Usopp let go of the rope, not wanting to be dragged into the cold waters, teetering at the edge of the boat, trying to regain his balance. A large had shot out from behind him, grabbing the rope and pulling Usopp back to safety at the same time. Usopp fell backwards and scampered into the kitchen as Lion worked on the rope, pulling it up one hand at a time with ease. He reached down and grabbed the 'package' with a single hand.
"Hey, Nami!" He called out. Nami, who had been following him around like a small puppy since her discovery about his identity, jumped slightly as she was summoned.
"What is it ojii-chan?" She asked curiously, eagerly eyeing the edge of the deck, where the precious package was hidden from view.
"I think this belongs to you." With a small grunt, Lion heaved a drenched Luffy and Chopper onto the deck, holding both of them by the scruff of their necks with one hand. Nami's disappointment was evident and her face fell.
"Oh, those two." She looked away, uninterested. "Just throw them somewhere." Suddenly, Lion snapped his fingers, remembering something.
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot!" He reached his free hand into a pouch hidden behind the combined bodies of Luffy and Chopper, and pulled out a large jar, filled to the brim with light orange gems. "These are for you." He held out the jar, only to pull back as Nami squealed with joy and reached for them eagerly. "Ah, ah, ah. You know the rules." He grinned a huge grin at her. " Give and take. You give something, you take something." He held the jar above her head tauntingly. "I'd say about a hundred berries each is fair." Nami pouted up at him, eyes brimming with tears. She wheedled up to him, nuzzling her head under his chin with hands clasped in hope. Finally, he relented.
"Alright, alright, take them you little thief." He let out a fake sigh, holding out the jar as if it were his newborn baby. "It's only 'cause you're so damn adorable though, so don't think it'll work every time!" He called out after her, but his words fell to deaf ears, as she had already snatched the jar and was hugging it to her chest, jumping with joy.
"I'm charging for the captain and raccoon though! A thousand each minimum!" Defeated, he looked down at the rubber boy and raccoon dog thing. He chuckled and dragged them towards the door Nami had disappeared through. Better get these two to bed before they get sick.
Usopp focused his goggles on the horizon. He didn't like that man. He wasn't very nice. Usopp scanned the horizon again, glancing at the sky uneasily. It was just supposed to be some bad looking clouds, but something didn't feel right. Something told him there was more. His eye caught something, and he locked onto it, zooming in. Suddenly he paled, and jerkily waded back into the cabin, pretending he had seen nothing. For across from the Thousand Sunny, resting on the horizon, there lay the burning wreckage of a dozen Marine ships, twisting and dying, the smoke rising from the bodies and polluting the sky.
"Nami-chan, what is that?" Robin eyed the jar Nami cradled suspiciously. "Rare and exotic jewels, perhaps?"
"Heehee." Nami giggled to herself, "Even better!"
Robin was taken aback. Something of even more merit than money to the navigator was like the second coming of Christ. "Even better than jewels?"
"Yeah!" The girl was absolutely bouncing in her seat as she fumbled with the lid of the jar. "These are candies made from Bellemere's tangerines!" She pulled out a light orange sucker, positively drooling, and popped it into her mouth. She savored the nostalgic taste, the tang of the citrus running over her senses.
"Ah, your adopted mother…" Robin trailed off, watching the younger woman as she squirmed around in pleasure. Nami peeked at Robin through one eye, and hesitantly held out the jar, almost like a child.
"Want one?"
Robin laughed softly. To be honest, she had little interest in sweets. But the innocence in Nami's eyes as she had asked that made it hard to refuse, and it was a good chance to get a literal taste of her past.
"Well, if it's only one, I suppose it won't hurt." She reached out into the jar, and plucked out the smallest candy she could find. Smiling, she showed it to Nami, and gently placed it into her mouth. Her eyes widened as the tangy sweetness ran its course. She could almost see Nami's mother picking tangerines in the grove, smell the ocean salt in the air of Cocoyashi Village, almost feel the love she had felt as she thought of her children. Along with a mixture of something else. A different type of love, yet very similar at the same time. More dark, mysterious, haunting. Yet still so seductive and sweet. Something…forbidden.
"See, it's good isn't it?" Robin was snapped back to reality by a curious Nami, who had crawled up to her face to study her expression. Slightly lost and bewildered, Robin took a moment to collect her thoughts. Finally, she smiled a genuine smile at Nami.
"It's the best."
"Yep. I knew it's the best!" The girl smiled happily to herself as she resealed the jar, placing it carefully next to her. "It's always the best."
Robin watched her, and felt a pang in her heart. Yet she had no idea why. So she reached out, and embraced the girl. As if closing the distance between their bodies would close the distance between their hearts.
"Eh? Robin, what's wrong?" A bewildered Nami bumbled around the woman's hold, unsure of what to do. Surrendering to her confusion, she decided that it would simply be for the best to let Robin get over her rare emotional moment, and let things work out for themselves.
"Nami?" Robin whispered into her ear sensually. Her hot breath tickled Nami's ear, making her blush a deep crimson.
"Y-yeah?"
"I think we forgot something…"
"Eh?" Robin pushed Nami back; her face showed she was clearly puzzled.
"I think we forgot something…" She repeated. Nami thought back hard. She replayed the events of the day. True, something was nagging at her from the back of her head, but nothing seemed to be really out of place.
"I get that feeling too…but I just can't remember it." Nami furrowed her brow in concentration. "Did we forget to pick something up at the last island?"
"I'm not quite sure…" the architect stroked her chin, thinking.
"Hmm…"
Zoro and Sanji treaded the ocean water aimlessly, waiting.
"This is all your fault you shitty marimo."
"…I blame you, you crap-cook."
That's all for now! Please don't hurt me T.T Anywho, I know I'm not a good person who updates anything like they're supposed to, so don't expect much I guess, I'm juggling work and play and sometimes a date, although fanfic is really fun, it's just not waaaaaay up there. Well, for those who are curious, no, I won't be emphasizing on Zoro or Sanji's time in the water, although I may make an extra chapter at some point talking about their quality time spent drowning together. For now, they're just gonna get picked up and plopped right back onto the Thousand Sunny. Soooooo, review and flame. Or whatever else it is happens here. =D