Chapter Six

*A skinny girl with hair cut like a boys lay on the roof top of the Marine base in Loguetown. She sighed peacefully as she watched the stars. Her legs were crossed so her foot could freely wave up and down without making any noise.

"Hey Belle," a voice whispered, causing her to jump.

She glared over at the voice knowing his deep growls anywhere, "Don't scare me like that Smoke." She shook her head and stared back up at the stars.

Smoker climbed up the rest of the way and sat down next to his best friend. "I brought you a gift." Reaching into his jacket he pulled out a strange looking fruit.

Belle sat up and looked at the fruit. GASP. Her eyes reached the size of saucers as she stared at the fruit then back at her friend. "That's a devil fruit! What are you doing with that?"

Smoker grinned mischievously, "After that old fart gave me floor duty I saw some crates being brought in. I decided to take a look and found some of these beauties." He bounced the fruit up and down in his palm. "I already ate mine," he offered Belle the fruit.

Her eyes narrowed abruptly, "No way!" She pushed the fruit away and too both their horror the fruit fell from Smoker's grip.

Both scrambled to get the fruit and ended up belly down at the edge. They watched as the fruit hit the ground and rolled away. Smoker looked at her and glared, "Look what you did dumbass!"

"You're the one stealing!" She whispered loudly in outrage.

"I was just trying to do something nice for you," He whispered back.

She shook her head, "When I become strong it will be without the power of the Devil Fruit."

Smoker made a face at her, and was about to say something when they heard someone approaching from down below. Ducking, the duo watched as a fellow recruit Belle recognized as Hina came strolling by. Shit. She stopped and looked around. It seemed that she noticed something and went off where they couldn't see. They both sighed in relief. If Hina caught them they would both be screwed. She was too much of a goodie goodie, even by Belle's standards.

"Who is there?" Hina called as she reappeared, holding the devil fruit. Shit! Smoker and Belle tried to quietly ninja their way back to the top. "You two, get down here!" Fucking shit monkeys.

Vice Admiral Garp glared down at the two recruits. "Smoker, you idiot, I should kick you out for stealing and consuming Marine property." He paused as the young man glared right with a look that said "bring it". Belle on the other hand had her head down. "Belle, you have kitchen duties along with all your other studies for breaking curfew." He said this to dismiss her. She looked at Smoker, concerned, but left knowing he could hold his own and praying he didn't get booted. "Now you, the only reason I'm not kicking your ass out right now, is that that Devil fruit you ate was a rare fruit. If I let you go, it would hurt the Marines more than help." Smoker grinned. WHACK! Garp punch his head so hard a grapefruit formed on the other man's head. "DON'T BE SO COCKY!" Garp went back to glaring as the young man rubbed at his head. "Ten days on the post, you are going to be my example," the Vice Admiral leaned into Smoker's face, an evil smile curling on his lips.

Damn that Hina, Smoker thought. The only thing she had going for her was that she was cute.*

Smoker paced back and forth in his room for the second time in one day because of that woman. This time was because he was the bastard she'd named him. He cursed under his breath as he remembered how she had felt under him. Her body had turned to fire leaving his body burned and scorched where she had touched and wiggled. His father had always told him to never play with fire, now he knew why. He had come out with third degree burns and an unsatisfied ached in his pants that could go right to Hell. He was such a little shit. The look on her face as he had pulled away was something he had relished at first. Her eyes had been large and full of desire. Her lips swollen and bruised from his rough kiss, and that beautiful flush of pleasure that colored her cheeks and chest. She had looked wanton, disheveled and gorgeous. Then reality had stepped in, like the cock sucker it was.

He cursed as the cigars in his mouth burned to stubs. Putting the useless ends in his ashtray and reached into his jacket, pulled out two more, and lit them. He had been through three stogies since he had left her room. The nicotine hadn't dulled anything, let alone sooth him as it usually did.

There was a knock at his door. "Leave me alone," he barked at the door as he continued to pass in his personal smog of problems. The door opened anyway, "I said," he trailed off as Belle stepped in.

Cough, "Could you open a window in here before I die from lack of oxygen, or lung cancer. Whichever one decides to come first…" He let the smoke open his windows clearing the room. He stared at her, really took her in. Damn, she really was beautiful. And damn him to Hell he wanted nothing more than to throw her on his bed and finish what he started. "Look," she shifted her weight from one foot to another. "I wanted to let you know that I am going to call HQ and let them know I'm taking myself off the mission for watching you for insubordination." She was looking at her hands, as she twisted her fingers in knots. Look at me, he pleaded silently. "But I'm not going to take myself off the search for the Straw Hats."She finally looked up and met his eyes. Steel hard determination lay there.

He blinked, and let her words sink in. He growled. "So your leaving my ship to still go after my targets." He cursed, "Can't you just leave and let me have them, God damn it." He glared.

She glared right back, "Put on your big girl panties and suck it up. You wanted me off your ship, well, you got it." Jabbing a finger in his direction she continued. "But I'm not going to give up my chance to prove that I'm the best."

As she turned to leave his body moved before he could think. She opened the door and his hand landed on the damn thing and closed it jaw once more. She glared up at him, anger coloring her high cheek bones. "Look, I know your pissed at me and fuck," he rubbed at his face and looked back down at her. "I deserve it, I'm sorry. Even though I know it doesn't change anything, I'm sorry. I was a shit for doing that to you, and I regret it." She gave him a look that said he could take his apology and shove it up his ass. She tried to open the door again but it wouldn't budge. She looked up at him exasperated, "I'm not sorry that it would take you off my case and off the Straw Hats," which still wasn't going to happen. Fuck. "But," I regret hurting you, "I regret everything else."

Her eyes narrowed to shards of emerald, "I'm sure you are. But you do realized we could have at least tried to work together to capture the Straw Hat's if nothing else. Instead of going our separate ways, we could have doubled our chances of catching them. But you," She shoved at his chest, "had to be a selfish bastard."

Everything scrambled in his brain and before he could think clearly he had grabbed her arm and let his mouth run. "You're right, so don't call right now."

They both blinked at one another. Both shocked, "What are you talking about?" That was a look that said he was crazy if he ever saw one.

Taking in a deep breath, "you can call HQ later; right now we'll look for the Straw Hats together." So that I can capture them, "you won't be breaking the rules if you tell them eventually." He shrugged, "just bending them a little."

Belle stared up at the hard man in front of her. Bending the rules huh? She couldn't see anything wrong with that as long as she wasn't breaking the rules. The million berry question was, whether she wanted to stay. His words echoed in her head, "I regret everything else." Yeah she was damned sure he had. He had been so detached, so cold after their kiss. It was if he had been an arsonist setting the fire and watching from afar, instead of joining her in the blaze. She turned her head away from him. Could she stay on the same boat with this man? The same man she had seen as a brother, a rival, her best friend. The same man who had kissed her and changed everything she had ever thought of him.

Yeah she could. Setting her jaw she looked back at Smoker and nodded.

She couldn't quite tell but his shoulders seemed to ease slightly. He nodded back, "Okay, I'll see you tomorrow." He moved away from the door, from her.

"Yup," she opened the door and left to go burn off some steam.

Smoker light his cigars as he woke up hat and sweaty. He looked at his clock and cursed at the time. It was around two o'clock in the morning. He looked down at the large lump in his jeans and cursed. Shoving his hand down his pants he grabbed the twitching bastard and readjusted him in a more painful position. Served the over excited asshole right. He sighed, letting out a puff of smoke, as he thought of Belle.

Technically, he was seeing her every day. She just wasn't talking to him. He couldn't deny that he deserved it, but days had past. Fireworks Island was barely 24 hours away from them, and he couldn't stop thinking of her. Hell she had even invaded his dreams. He had woken up every night with his hips grinding into his mattress or pillow, images of her body bowing and writhing under him stilling lingering behind his minds eyes. He didn't' even try to sleep last night, just walked around until he found her training and watched her from afar. Of course doing that hadn't helped him at all. He was becoming an insomniac to avoid wanting her only to see her and want her. Both combinations where deadly, it was hard to chose his poison. It didn't matter which one he chose though because he would just twist his jeans to hurt the jumping bastard in them, and endured his well deserved punishment. She would have been proud if she'd known that he had put on his big girl panties and sucked it up.

He supposed that what he got for opening Pandora's Box.

Sitting up and wincing at the pain that shot through his cock, Smoker grabbed his jacket and left his room. He knew that he wasn't helping himself, but he was going to go find her. He knew she was going to be up. She never slept, just like she never stayed in one place.

The breeze of the sea whipped her bangs back from her face and sent the sweet salt up her nose. Her hands gripped and let go and gripped again on the railing of the prow of the ship.

Belle really didn't want to train, for the first time in her life. She had never felt so tired before in her entire life also. It wasn't normal for her because she was rarely ever tired at all. The only reason she ever even tried to sleep was because her body needed it to continue functioning properly. Now, she just wished she could sleep so that she didn't have to think for any long period of time. Her few and rare dreams had changed. She was now dreaming of him. She would wake up with her body aching in a deliciously painful way, her legs unconsciously moving together in a fruitless effort to relieve the throbbing.

She turned at the sound of footsteps approaching. Who would be up at this hour? Her heart skipped a beat then rushed into a sprint as her eyes landed on Smoker. He stood next to her and nodded in greeting. She responded in kind and silently screamed. She had been having dreams of this man ravishing her body. Now having him next to her, seemed unreal, though if she was being fair, everything with him seemed unreal. She closed her eyes, wishing for the old days when things were so much simpler.

"Not sleeping well still," Belle stole a glance his way and nodded. Better to stay silent. "Yeah, me either. I keep having these dreams."

Fully turning her head, she studied him. Was he…blushing? No way, Smoke never blushed unless you counted when he was pissed. The dark must be playing with her eyes. She cleared her throat, "What kind of dreams?"
He met her eyes at that moment. "I don't know if I should say." His lids dropped half way down and he stared at her intently.

Becoming irritated, Belle grabbed her braid and started to run her hands over the groves. What was he doing giving her such a look. She wasn't stupid, she was in her thirty's, and she knew when a man was throwing off the "thinking of you with your clothes off" look. He had to be messing with her again, and that just pissed her off. Throwing her braid over her shoulder she glared at him. "Are you messing with me? Because if you are, I'm going to go to your room while you're sleeping, shave off your cock and balls, and hang them over my bed as a trophy. Got that?"

Smoker blinked and started to laugh. Twisted bastard, okay it was a little funny. "No, I'm not messing with you," he smiled releasing smoke from his mouth.

She nodded trying to hide her smirk, "Then what did you dream about?" She studied him as he paused. He actually seemed uncomfortable. "You know," she started to twist her fingers, "even if I'm upset with you, you are still my friend. So if you want to tell me something you can." She tore her eyes from her fingers and met his intense gaze.

He took the cigars stubs out of his mouth. Had they really been out here that long? She refocused on him. His eyes traveled down to her lips causing her breath to shorten as the oxygen turned to fire. "I've been having dreams about you." His voice had turned to gravel as he licked his lips.