A/N Sorry for the late-ish update! School has been hectic, with mocks looming and endless controlled assessments and homeworks being thrown at me in a constant stream. Will try to update more regularly when I have time, as well as replying to Reviews! Enjoy
DISCLAIMER~! I, very obviously, don't own One Piece. No one would read it if I did.
Nami slumped over the railing of the Sunny. She was sure that she would collapse otherwise. She had spent the last few hours searching the island in complete darkness, but with no signs of her crew ever having been there, except for the Sunny docked in the port. She was exhausted, both physically and mentally, as well as being emotionally spent; her crew were nowhere to be found, and the loneliness and self-pity was becoming unbearable for her.
All around her were various items which she had come across on her travels around the ship, sentimental objects that tore her up when she looked at them. They shouldn't be here, they should be where they belonged; they should be with their owners, the only ones who were allowed to possess them.
Ussop's green Kabuto, long and slender, should be strapped to his back, or clenched tightly in his shaking fist. Franky's stashes of cola should be loaded and ready to use as fuel for the cyborg's large range of attacks and special moves. The book that Robin was so close to finishing, now lying neglected on the grass by Nami's feet, was supposed to be firmly grasped in the Archaeologist's pale hands.
Three lone swords, the braiding on their handles standing out amongst the grey of the coming night, belonged in the muscular hands of one of the Straw Hat's resident swordsmen, Zoro. A golden lighter, glinting softly in the moonlight, should be clothed in a certain suit pocket, while the packet of cigarettes that were often coupled with it was normally clenched between Sanji's grinning lips. Chopper's rumble balls were scattered among the other items, including the long, slender cane that was usually gliding across the strings of a violin that Brook would have cradled in the crook of his bony neck.
Finally, her eyes rested upon a single object, a precious keepsake that had only ever graced her head a few times. It was tattered and torn, but it wasn't anything she couldn't fix. That was the problem; Luffy should be the one shoving it in her face, begging her to fix it as twin waterfalls constantly streamed from his eyes. It shouldn't be here, with her, but without its owner. Nami reached out whilst crouching beside the treasure that Luffy had thrown his life into danger on numerous occasions to save from several bitter enemies.
Brushing her fingers lightly over the beloved straw hat, she memorised the rough texture of the material, forever etching it into her memory should she be parted from it. She gingerly lifted it up and placed it on her own head, tying the string that she had sown on to it so long ago tightly under her chin. She would be damned if she let anything happen to it in Luffy's absence.
It smelled strongly of sweat, seawater and meat, scents that she would forever associate with her fun-loving, happy-go-lucky captain. The scent was so strong that she could practically feel his presence beside her, but when she turned around there was nothing but the sea, the skyline, the rising sun and a slowly shrinking ship in the distance to greet her. Nami felt a great sense of loneliness as the ship got further and further away; The Thousand Sunny was now the only ship left in port, and it looked like a sorry sight without the majority of its crew.
Wait. A ship, sailing on the horizon? The only ship to be seen for miles? That can't be right.
Nami snapped her head back to the retreating outline of the ship, eyeing it suspiciously. From this distance, she couldn't see a blasted thing, so she quickly ran into her room and started to rummage around her drawers, looking for her telescope (technically, it was Ussop's, but he had his goggles and so had no use for the telescope anymore. Therefore, Nami had convinced him to let her keep it for free). Triumph wormed its way into her chest when she finally pulled it from the very back of the drawer, but she pushed it aside as she made her way back outside to spy on the ship again.
Squeezing one eye shut, Nami searched for the flag through the lens of the telescope. It took her some time to find the ship again, but when her eye finally found what it was looking for, she gasped. Proudly emblazoned on the sails and the flag wasn't a jolly roger like she was expecting, instead, the Marine's logo was clearly displayed for all to see. Well, for Nami to see at least.
Throwing the telescope to the side, and gathering up all of her nakamas' various items, she shoved everything that could be tied down into the kitchen before locking the door. If a storm came up, which she feared it would, she would not have time to scoop everything up before they all fell overboard. Next, she ran to where the anchor had been thrown over the edge and hauled it up, slowly but surely.
Her arms were hurting long before the anchor had even reached halfway. This was usually a stronger member of the crew's job, like Zoro or Franky, but she was on her own and so she had to do it if she wanted to save her nakamas in time. Nami glanced at her arms, seeing how the veins were protruding out due to the effort she was putting in to raise the anchor. Finally, she slumped on the deck as the anchor was fully lifted out of the sea so that she could regain some of her energy.
After lying about for two minutes, Nami rose to her feet with a groan as her elbows clicked from the hard work. Her stomach growled, reminding her that she had not eaten since dinner the previous night, but she ignored its complains as she set about getting the ship ready for sailing. As she tugged on ropes and turned the wheel with great difficulty, Nami began to realise just how much she wished her crew could be there to help her, to assist her in the work that she usually left to them.
The Thousand Sunny slowly turned towards the other ship, which was now little more than a speck in the distance. Nami had no idea how to use a Coup de Burst, so she could only pray that the currents would be in her favour today so that she could recover some lost ground, and fast.