Chapter Fifteen

The three girls searched through the racks, picking and choosing dresses to try on. Robin found a few close-fitting, floor-length dressed in darker colors that went well with her skin tone, while Koala continued to pick the fluffier dresses with poofy skirts and sparkles decorating them like dewdrops.

Yuki had found two or three to consider. One was a floor-length ballgown with an amazing amount of sparkles clustered around the top edge of the bodice, and another was an off-the-shoulder gown with long sleeves that was blending blues and purples. It had a thin ribbon criss-crossing down the back, tied in a bow at hip level. The other one was similar to both, a mix of the two, though it was backless.

In the changing room, Yuki pulled on the first gown. It fit well enough, and the cut was flattering on her slim figure. When she showed the others, the reaction she got was positive and pleasant. It was appropriate, elegant, and suited her well.

Back in the changing room, she didn't get very far before the spasms started. This pain she felt was becoming increasingly common, most likely a remnant of the fatal injury she sustained during the war.

It started with a slight tightness in her chest, an ache that made her double over and cough violently. She was barely able to catch her breath in between the coughing and the muscle spasms, and something was causing her to cough up a bit of blood.

She grabbed the bench as she collapsed, slowing her fall a bit. When the coughing started, she had to keep it quiet or the others would hear. She didn't want them to worry, it wasn't something she cared about. It was obvious that something like this would happen if someone was revived from the dead.

That thought remained in her head. She was brought back from the dead. Her torso had previously had a huge, gaping hole in it. She knew that most of her organs had been charred by the lava Akainu had at his disposal. Fixing that, dead or alive, was no small feat for anyone. Her body had taken the excess damage, but she didn't know whether Sabo was suffering because of it.

After her coughing fit was over, she looked at her sweatshirt. She had used it to stifle the coughs, and now it had fresh red smears on it. Great. It would be harder to hide the problem from her companions.

"Sabo!"

Yuki heard Koala's exclamation. She guessed that he had appeared quietly and catlike, that habit he had developed after he supposedly passed away when they were children. He seemed to enjoy startling people.

She smeared the blood, blending it in with the black fabric as best she could. Hopefully the others wouldn't pay too much attention to it, she hoped, and pulled the sweatshirt on. Holding the dress in front of her body, she carefully stepped out of the dressing room.

"Hey, Sabo," she greeted, catching sight of the fair-haired man. "Do you need us for anything?"

He quickly glanced at her, subtly checking her appearance. His eyes lingered on one of her sleeves before he looked her in the eyes again. "Yeah, we've finally got your identity all set up and ready. Once you head back, you'll be given a debriefing."

She quietly ignored the once-over he had given her in favor of the news he had brought. Information about her alias for the party was something she had been looking forward to, because she enjoyed role playing and acting.

Yuki laughed, "Really? Do tell. Am I to be some foreign princess, waiting on the arm of my prince? Or maybe I'm a mysterious associate to the Revolutionary Army. I bet I'd be the star of party, then!"

Sabo chuckled at her subtle jabs at his background. "No, no, nothing as dramatic as that! If they made you someone so impressive, it would certainly draw everyone's attention to you. That's exactly what we wanted to avoid. Turns out you're actually Arika Matsumoto from Wano country. You're a friend of their ambassador to us, and you were invited along by him."

"Uh-huh." Yuki peered suspiciously at him, awaiting further intel. None was given, so she relaxed and waited for the next comment.

Koala spoke up. "Sorry, Sabo... I kinda met your friends before you could give me an introduction. I know you wanted to and all, but it just sorta happened. I was worried about my outfit for the party, and they offered to help me look for one, so..."

Sabo ruffled her hair fondly. "Don't worry about it too much," he replied.

Yuki instantly thought of Ace and their relationship. He was supposed to be like a brother, but she developed feelings for him eventually. He was the sweet kind of person who would help a lost kid find their parent, or help an elderly person carry something. She had always admired that about him.

She had the feeling that Koala and Sabo were a couple, even if they didn't call it that. Those two seemed closer than she had been with anyone in a while. They had fun together, and Sabo seemed almost sweeter than usual.

"This is Koala," he stated, "my partner. She and I usually go on missions together and do things like negotiate or investigate. Since you two were with me, I didn't bring Koala along to Alabasta. You were still settling in, Yuki."

Robin laughed quietly. "She's very sweet. It's nice to formally meet you, Koala."

Yuki nodded, smiling warmly. "Yep. A friend or partner or whatever of Sabo's is definitely a friend of mine," she added. "You can count on me! Don't hesitate to ask if you need anything I can help with."

Koala looked on the verge of tears again. "Thank you, guys. I'm glad you're my friends! I was worried that you might not like me..."

"I did think it was odd that you recognized us so quickly," Robin commented.

"Mm-hm. Did Sabo tell you about us or something?" Yuki asked curiously.

Koala nodded, tears gone. "He told me all about you and Ace and Luffy. I think your treehouse sounds really cool! Maybe I could build one someday... that'd be so cool to do!"

"So, are you two together?" Yuki asked, deciding to be blunt.

Sabo and Koala blushed and started to stutter out explanations and denial before catching the looks on Robin's and Yuki's faces. Robin was amused, but Yuki had an expression that said "you keep telling yourself that".

Sabo sighed, looking awkward. "Well, I don't... I'm not sure. Koala?"

Koala smiled, still blushing and trying to hide her face.

"Well, that's it, then. You two are an official couple now. Surprised you haven't gotten past this point already. You look adorable together!" Yuki announced loudly. She caught sight of some pirate peering over the racks at them.

Robin must have noticed it, too, because she said, "Let's go somewhere else to talk. We're still in the middle of a store, regardless of how much it seems like a bar or some other place."

The others nodded and went through checkout, purchasing the dresses they had decided on. Sabo and Koala were still flustered for quite some time, only getting back to normal after finally reaching the small ships they had used to reach the island.