Some-thing new filled the night air un-board the sunny, some-thing they never had had before, and only Luffy had found in any-way necessary.
But now when they finally had it, every-body agreed. Luffy had been right, it felt right and it made the crew feel complete. Now when they finally had it, none of them wanted to let it go.
That sound that travelled over Sunny, it was a soft violin playing, it was like the tones would float with the night breeze, and make every-one relax, even those who were sleeping would just relax even more in their sleep.
Nami how-ever had been up late drawing maps, and as she had heard the soft tones of that, she just felt like taking a stroll while taking it in.
The calm breezes, the starry night, the perfect temperature.. not really cold, not really warm.. just perfect.
Especially after that gloomy thriller bark experience.
Looking up Nami caught eye of the crows-nest, which exspectly enough had a light turned on in it. Namie had to wrack her brain a little bit to remember whom had the first night watch that night. And then she remembered.. Usopp!
Nami smiled lightly, it would be nice to get a little alone time with Usopp, there was some things she hadn't talked to him about for a while, a couple of questions Nami had wanted to ask Usopp lately.
As Nami popped her head up in the comfortable room that was nows the crow's nest.. Nami had to crook an eye-brow.
Usopp was on his post where he was supposed to be, sitting on the couch under the window, leaning his chin in his hand, looking out at the ocean with a dreaming look in his eyes.
What was so surprising though was right in front of him.. on the table, stood a glass and a bottle of sake.
"Usopp are you drinking?" Nami asked as she crawled all the way up.
"Oh Good-evening Nami." Usopp smiled lightly at her, not even startled. Brook's music had a calming effect on every-body when the skeleton played like that, some-times Nami suspected it was some sort of out-wordly magic. "What brings you up here?" he asked.
"Oh nothing special." Nami told as she brushed off her skirt and then sat in the couch opposed Usopp. "But would you care answer me, are you drinking?" she asked.
"I just felt like having a glass." Usopp told.
"Really?" Nami asked.
"Really." Usopp promised.
"And you're sure, it's not because you are trying to get drunk or some-thing like that?" Nami asked annoyed crossing her arms.
"What no!" Usopp exclaimed. "Okay I admit it, I havn't felt well for time, but then I didn't drink cause I thought I didn't deserve it, now I feel kind of better so I felt like I could take a drink with me!" he told. "I'm allowed!" he proclaimed.
Nami blinked then looked at Usopp. "Well I am glad you are feeling better." She told. "Care to share what's different?" she asked as she took Usopp's glass and then emptied it out herself.
"Hey that was mine!" Usopp exclaimed.
"Gesh, pour up some more." Nami rolled her eyes. "What are you afraid of, getting girl gems?"
"No I.. oh never mind." Usopp sighed doing as suggested and simply poured more sake up in the glass they were apparently now sharing.
"So what's up?" Nami asked in a light smile. "How are you these days Usopp?" she told.
"I told you I am good, I.." Usopp swallowed, and then he smiled a little amused.
"What?" Nami asked now also amused.
"Thriller bark." Amused Usopp shook his head. "After we came back from there. I'm just.. I don't know, I feel so good." He told.
"Really?" Nami asked. "But I heard about the negative ghosts… that they didn't.. you know.. because apparently you always feel like that."
"No Nami." Usopp shook his head. "They worked, they made me feel even more miserable than I all-ready felt. But the thing is.. I tried feeling more miserable before than even the ghosts could make me. The negative ghosts were bad, but they were nothing compared to the day I duelled Luffy."
Confused Nami looked at Usopp. "How is that a good thing?" she asked. "Why are you smiling at that?" she asked.
"I just.. heh." Usopp shook his head as he placed a hand on his forehead. "Nami I won." He told. "I could win over Perona, because I had all-ready won over that feeling ones, it can't take me down again." He told looking amused at Nami. "Zoro couldn't fight again the negativity, Sanji couldn't fight against the negativity, not even Luffy! I was the only one, and I fought against it.. and I won! Nami I won!" he smiled. "You realise what that means?" he asked.
"It means nothing Usopp." Nami shook her head. "You were always able to do stuff no-body else in this crew could, all you did was adding a new ability to the list." She told. "All though.. that sure is a unique strength." She observed. "Good job Usopp." She smiled.
"Nami when I left Syrup, I did it to grow and become a strong warrior. I have grown!" Usopp told spreading out his arms. "I can just feel it, I am not the same person as when I left, I am much stronger."
"of cause you are, you worked hard for it." Nami told, though in a slight smile as she took their shared glass and then took a sip. "So did we all."
"Yeah." Usopp smiled. "You sure have gotten strong to in the time we have been on this ship." He grinned.
"Lets just continue this line, ei?" Nami asked in a blink.
"Yeah! I have a great feeling about the future." Usopp told. "Just you wait and see, it'll be great!" he laughed, and took a healthy mouthful of his Sake before he grinned.
But Usopp should have learned.. it would have been impossible to foresee of cause.. that it wouldn't be so long after Usopp's uplifting realisation, that tragedy happened.. and the crew, the people that had now become more than just a crew to each other, had become a true family. Whom all cared for each other, more than any-thing in the world.. were split up, teared apart, and ended at each their remote location, with no idea of what had happened to the rest.
Often Nami would stand on the tall cloud, and look at the massive look-out beneath her, where she could see lots of tiny islands out at the horizont if she squinted her eyes.
And as she did saw the islands, Nami couldn't help but wonder.. if maybe one of her Nakamas was on one of those Islands, she was willing to do a lot to see just one of them.. any of them.
She was even willing to show her panties for free if it meant Brook would come running out of no-where.
Or give Sanji a kiss on the cheek, if it meant he would climb this sky this very moment so Nami could see him.
But Nami had to wait patiently, and work hard, to see her crew-mates again.
One thing made her very relieved though, Nami tried to search her heart but.. she wasn't that worried about her crew-mates. Some-how she just knew, that they would all pull through and be stronger than ever before when she would meet them again. That was a very good reason to work hard so she wouldn't fall behind.
Even Chopper or Usopp, whom she would have been most worried about a few months back.. She wasn't to worried about, she knew they would be fine, she just wished she could see them soon.
Two years just seemed like such a long time some-times.. and yet, not time enough at all, if Nami were to learn all that she needed to learn, and become as strong as she needed to be.
A year… a year had gone by for Usopp on the living island.. isolated, and beside Heracles and the giant beatles on the island, Usopp had been all alone.
No Heracles had been great! And thankfully Usopp weren't scared of insects in particular.. only the massive ones that could swallow him whole.
And Usopp was kind of happy none of the others in the crew were they to witness… his little problem.
Thankfully this island didn't have any mirrors either.. Usopp sighed deeply, if he got to decide he would never have any breaks from his training, he was determined to use every second he had as good as he could.
But Heracles had insisted, that he go lay down by the cold water pond, maybe take a relaxing swim.
The water pond… with its reflective surface.. the way to calm, way to reflective water pond that Usopp had avoided for all of this time for a reason.
Sitting by the pond Usopp felt nervous all over again, he had very much on purpose avoided his own reflection, repulsed by his big corpus from the last time, and he hadn't seen his image since that time. He remembered it well how surprised he had been…
"No, that's not me is it?" he asked looking at the mirror reflection.
"I told you, it wasn't muscles, the island were feeding you up." Heracles had responded.
From that moment Usopp felt absolutely horrid and absolutely sick as he turned away from the reflection and fell to the ground. "How could I do this to myself?" he asked in a sniff as he now saw how fat his arms and belly looked, how difficult it was to even bow over, he couldn't see his own toes for crying out loud!
Heracles sighed. "It's not really your fault, I shouldn't have brought you there without warning you, it's the natural trap of the island, the place was designed to trap and feed up any-one stumbling upon it not knowing better, ones you start eating it gets harder and harder to stop, hell I was so impressed you managed to snap out of it, I never seen any-one at that stage snap out of it before, that should be impossible! …. What are you doing?" Heracles suddenly asked.
"What does it looked like I'm doing?" Usopp hissed as he pressed his arms against the ground and pushed his entire enormous corpus over the ground, to lower it and then repeat the motion as big sweat drops escaped his face. "I'm working out!"
Heracles blinked. "Working.. out?"
"Heracles please promise me." Usopp hissed as he continued with the puss ups, which should be impossible for some-one his seize, obviously it was only determination driving him, letting him do this impossible feet. "Don't let me go back to that trap! What-ever I say, not matter how I may beg, don't let me go back there! I'll life of bugs, bark and water if I have to. I won't go back there!" he hissed as he rolled over and started on the stomach stretches, which were very difficult for him in his current state.. but yet he did it.
"Usopp.." Heracles blinked astounded. "Don't worry I promise you! We wont go back there, it'll be a strict vegetarian diet for you from now on until you are back to your old self!"
"You'll really help me?" Usopp asked. "Really?"
"Well I like you boy." Heracles admitted. "Been a long time since I had any company at all, and I guess I feel a little responsible." He admitted.
Usopp smiled a little thankfully. "Thanks." He told before gritting his teethes and try another stomach turn. "Yosh." Usopp hissed as he almost blackened out form the simple push ups and stomach stretches, which he had been able to do with ease only a few days ago, and he was all-ready forced to take a break if he wasn't to pass out, and still he felt so sick, so repulsed by the thought of that water reflection.. that would have to be a year ago now.. if not even more.. he had lost a bit track of time.
Usopp shook his head. "Stop it stupid, you are not that big any-more! You can see your toes!" he exclaimed and looked down on them, wriggling them. "I can even touch them, See!" he exclaimed bowing over touching his own toes. "It can't be that bad!" he exclaimed as he stood up straight, then exhaled. "Just be glad none of the others had to see you that way usopp, god I hope I'm soon back to my old frame." he murmured.
Usopp had never been a good looker, but neither was he really bad looking. His lips, nose and eyes were hardly that of a ladies man, like for example Sanji, but Usopp had liked how he looked regardless, he looked like his mom and father, was the picture of the two, and he was very proud of that. If there was one thing he had always wanted to do some-thing about though, it was his, quite frankly, lanky frame. Which was tall for his own age, unbalanced, scrawny. He had always been a lanky odd looking figure, and he had always wished to put on just a little guff, a little more of a manly frame.. But not like he had, for ones, Usopp ended up begging and praying in his mind that he was back to his old lanky scrawny self, or at least close.
Deciding it was about to face facts, Usopp squinted close his eyes and leaned over the still pond, slowly he opened his left eye and looked down.
First Usopp blinked, then he had to take a double check, then a triple check, he looked behind his shoulder as if to check there was some-one there he hadn't noticed.. but there was no one. Then he looked at the reflective image again, lifted a hand to his chin, and witnessed the mirror image do the same, as his hand felt the unfamiliar sensation of stubbles on the chin. "WOAH!" Usopp screamed in shock and fell headfirst down in the water, before he sat up straight gasping for water. "I GOT A BEARD!" Usopp exclaimed touching all over his chin. "When in the blazes did that happen!?" he exclaimed looking down at a picture that was very hard to recognise, a fellor with a pretty long nose, it was not a boy in the reflection, but rather a very young man, whom was unshaved and as a result had stubbles cover his entire chin and cheeks. His hair which was always kept back by his bandana had grown very very long, and now fell down over his shoulders. Usopp knew his hair had grown longer, but he hadn't thought it was that long. All his hair was to him, was some-thing he had to keep out of his face when he was shooting, not any-thing to groom. Usopp wasn't exactly a vain type caring that much about such things as hair.
But then he became vain, as his face wasn't the only thing unrecognisable.. He was not back to his lanky frame as he hoped. No.. His chest and shoulder were definitely wider than before, but not because of fat, it didn't look like he had a gram of fat on him, no it was simply because of the muscle, he almost had a Zoro type body!
"Woah." Usopp gasped as he stroke a pose, looking in awe at himself. "Usopp, a man of the sea!" he laughed. "YAY!" he jumped up and down and up and down. "Wait till the other sees me, they are going to be so impressed." he laughed. "Oh Chopper, this, this is nothing, that is just what happens when a hero becomes a manly hero." he made up a story at ones. "Oh Luffy, who's the boy of the crew now huh, huh?" he asked. "Zorro can I borrow a weigh, I feel like keeping this up." he smirked kissing his upper arm. "Nami, you need me to carry any-thing? No need for Sanji to do that, Franky I can totally handle heavy machinery, what do you think.. Robin.. Brook.." Usopp silenced. "Guys." he sat down in the water looking out. "How long has it actually been now?" he questioned himself looking down. "I've actually lost track of time." he realised. "I've been so busy that it's been a while." he sighed deeply. "I hope I'll soon see all of you again." he admitted as he felt a tear pressing on, before he dipped his head, and slowly began washing his hair, really rinse all of that giant main he now had.. He could make an afro out of this hair as big as brooks if he wanted, Usopp realised.. But that was Brook's thing, not really Usopps, he didn't feel like having any Afro, such a thing would be much more of a bother than was worth for him, he needed his hair practical for sharp shooting and machine work, and he needed it under control. Maybe he should cut it?
.. He had tried cutting himself very short haired once before when he was a kid, as it had turned out, that had been a very bad idea, as completely short curly hair that grow on its own, was even more unimaginable, and would get in the way for to much when it grew a certain length, without there being any way to get it away from the face.
Usopp sighed, before he at last reached for his satchel and found a little string, which he tied his hair up with before he looked back at his reflection. "Much better." Usopp stated. "Wow, my hair is really away from the face now, neat." he realised. And he looked even more different with his hair no longer framing his face, but being pulled back, he looked.. well manly. Definitely needed a shave though. Usopp found one of his knifes, and carefully held it in his hand, unsure of what to do.. no one had ever showed him how to shave. Had he been on the ship, he would probably all blushing and embarrassed have asked Sanji or Zoro.. now he carefully tried himself. "I'm leaving a little bit." he decided. "Just because it's manly." and Usopp did very well, only nipping his chin one single time, and immediately knew what he had done wrong, he left just a little bit of beard on his chin, and stood back with his new reflection.
.. it looked so different, so not like what he remembered. It was an improvement for sure, but still. "Wonder how much the others have changed." Usopp sighed deeply as he sat down on the grass poking his nose, then halted, poked his nose one more time and then grinned. His nose was exactly the same! That sure was one feature that would never change! And Usopp grinned by the notion, also remembering that that grin was so much his and his alone, then he laughed. "It's going to be all-right." He laughed. "Just all-right, we all changed when we left for sea, any-thing else would be weird." He noted as he rolled to his tummy and lazily let his hand stir around the pond. "But it's all good, looking so much forward to see all of you again." He told… trying desperately to ignore the little tear running down his cheek.