I went to the beach last weekend, in the middle of February. Collected seashells, played in the water with my dog, got a tan... I've never felt so stereotypical in my life, let me tell you.
Anywho, I was going to start writing and I went onto youtube to find music (which would somehow end up with me on Tumblr and not writing, as you all know) when my internet literally just shut itself down. Like... No warning, no "your internet went down"-thingy afterwards. Just- Bloop! Gone.
I think it's a sign to get my lazy ass back into gear...
"IT'S FINISHED! LUFFY'S PIRATE FLAG!" He shouted, proudly showing it off to everyone. "I already had the emblem in mind!"
Gwenyth, whom had gathered the rest of the crew per his request, grimaced. She'd seen six year olds with better drawing skill, but with that huge, proud grin on his face, she couldn't bring herself to tell him how awful it was. Besides, it wasn't like she could do any better.
"Emblem?" Usopp asked, his mouth and eyes opened in disbelief. "This guy's a little low on the design side."
"Or... Is it avant-garde?" Nami offered, trying not to be rude.
"A pirate flag ought to inspire terror," Zoro mumbled. "And this is pretty scary."
"You guys like it?" Luffy asked. "Gwen?"
The blonde pirate jumped at the sound of her name. Like a deer caught in headlights, unable to search for an escape route. She didn't want to hurt her friend's feelings, he had worked so hard on it after all. But at the same time, she didn't want to fly that crappy excuse of a flag. They'd be the laughingstock of the seven seas! Or however many seas were in this world. Maybe she could jump overboard and pretend to drown. That way she wouldn't have to say anything.
"Your painting stinks, Luffy!" Usopp answered for her. "Let me try!"
"I'll cut you a new piece," Gwenyth quickly offered, walking back to the leftover fabric.
After a quick measuring and marking of the material, Gwenyth carefully cut through it. She handed it to Usopp who immediately set to work. Telling some tall tale about how he studied under a famous artist for a week before surpassing the old man. Gwenyth had to admit, he was much better at painting than Luffy. Though, last time she checked, their flag didn't include a long nose or a slingshot...
"That's not our emblem!" Luffy and Zoro said, bonking Usopp on the back of his head.
After another couple of minutes, and the correct emblem being painted, everyone started getting excited. Nami approved the newer version of the flag as Zoro compared the two.
"Let's paint it on the sail, too!" Luffy shouted.
"How?" Gwenyth asked with uncertainty. Were they going to lift themselves up somehow? Or maybe take the sail down? Was there even enough room on the deck for the sail? Gwen didn't think so.
"I'm a man of many talents," Usopp explained. "I've been drawing on walls for years."
"That doesn't explain how you're gonna get to the sail," she grumbled. "But, whatever."
Gwenyth folded the rest of the black polyester, there wasn't much left, and put her tools back into the tin sewing kit. She kept pausing to watch her crewmates scurry around. They had found some of the rope in the other other room and were apparently trying to tie it in a way that could be used as some sort of makeshift harness. Gwenyth picked up her sewing supplies, brought them inside, and put them away in their proper crates. For a moment, she thought about going outside to help, but they had been doing fine on their own.
Instead she went back down to her bedroom, intent on finding a good place to put her picture. Picking it up from off her bed, Gwenyth went around the room setting it here and there, and up against walls. It would look fine on the desk, but that was more of a shared space. Putting it there might make it seem like she was trying to claim it. Same with the bookshelf. The only other place to put it was a small shelf above her bed that held a few useless, but highly decorative trinkets.
She moved said objects around, allowing more space for her picture. It looked well among the other items, but Gwenyth couldn't help but worry about it falling onto her face as she slept. She shrugged to herself. Better it fall and be cushioned by her face than fall and break on the floor.
Gwenyth hopped off her bed and headed back on deck. Just as she had predicted, the painting was going smoothly without her. Usopp was in the harness dangling beside the sail (though to call it a harness was probably an insult to harnesses everywhere as it looked more like a mess of knots and not at all safe), Zoro and Luffy were holding the other end of the rope, and Nami was sitting on the beam just above the sail, several cans of paint beside her. In charge of somehow passing them to Usopp.
"Good job, you guys! It's coming along great!" She encouraged.
Usopp soon finished and after double checking with Gwenyth, whom was the only one able to judge the sail from afar, the group relaxed.
Proud of their hard work, the seamstress took the responsibility of cleaning up. Taking the left over paints and putting them back in the other other room (which really needed an official name, because she wasn't sure how long she could keep calling it The Other Other Room without confusing herself or her crewmates.) She was a little surprised at how well things were moving along. They'd gotten a ship, made a flag, and painted on the sail all in the same day. Not to mention her absolutely lovely, strawberrified shower. She wondered what their plan was now. They were kind of just drifting out to open sea, as far as she could tell. Were they finally headed for the Grand Line?
A loud, thundering BOOM! caused Gwen to give a quick scream before rushing back outside. They had only just put up their flag. Was someone seriously attacking them right now? After a rapid survey of the scene, she let out a breath of relief. Luffy and Usopp, being the children that they were, were merely messing around with one of the cannons.
"Geez, you two," she shook her head as she approached them. "Are ya trying to give me a heart attack?"
"Hey, Gwen," Luffy greeted, "We're trying to hit that rock."
"Oh, yeah? How's that going?"
"Judging by the first shot," Usopp mumbled, adjusting the cannon. "This should do it." He lit the fuse and after few seconds another loud BOOM! shook their eardrums as a cannonball soared through the air. Not only hitting its target, but completely demolishing it.
"HOLY HELL CAKES! SO COOL, BRO!"
"WOW! YOU/I HIT IT ON YOUR FIRST TRY!" The boys cried simultaneously, both equally surprised. Usopp, clever as he was, immediately straightened up, putting on an air of confidence.
"See? Didn't I tell you? I always hit what I aim at. If you're impressed just call me 'Captain'."
"You're never going to give that up, are you?"
"Of course not! Everyone knows a brave warrior of the sea never gives up, Gwenyth!" He scolded.
"We'll call you... Our sharpshooter!" Luffy decided.
"Can I call him a sniper? Or maybe a marksman, instead?"
"If you want to, I guess."
"I do. It's easier."
"'Sharpshooter' isn't hard."
"No, but it's a little weird, don't ya think?"
"Not really."
"Well you don't think much anyway, so it doesn't matter."
"If you two are going to argue over my title, maybe it should just be 'Captain'!"
"No way, Luffy's/I'm the captain." They countered. "And we're not arguing."
"OH COME ON!"
Gwenyth laughed at Usopp's equally disbelieving and unamused face. "Relax, dude. No need to get upset. Maybe you're just hungry."
"I sure am!"
"I already know you're hungry, Luffy. You're always hungry."
The rubber man laughed in agreement as they made their way up to the kitchen-lounge-area-room-thing. Gwenyth and Usopp went back and forth, trying to figure out who should make lunch. Both originally thought that Luffy should be the one to cook since he undoubtably ate the most, but immediately reconsidered once they remembered who they were dealing with. Usopp told them he knew how to fry eggs, rice, and could probably make something called miso soup, though he'd never actually made it from scratch before. Gwenyth didn't like the idea of being Usopp's guinea pig and offered instead.
Nami, already sitting at the dining table, greeted them. "What're you three up to?"
"I'm gonna make lunch for you guys, since you painted the sail and stuff. Do you want scrambled eggs or grilled cheese sandwiches, cause that's the extent of my culinary know-how."
"That's it?" Zoro asked from his place on the floor.
"I work with fabric, not food," she explained. "Take what you can get."
"Fine. I'll have the sandwich thing."
"Same," Nami mumbled, writing something down in a book.
"Well, if everyone's cool with it..." Gwenyth glanced at Usopp and Luffy for any disagreement, but they were busy sorta-not-really arguing over the title of captain once again. She gathered the cheese and butter from the fridge and the bread from the breadbox, and went on a miniature scavenger hunt for a pan.
By the time Gwenyth had made enough for everyone (which took much longer than necessary since a certain someone kept stealing finished sandwiches), the boys had come to an agreement. Luffy could be captain, but if he ever showed cowardice, Usopp swore he'd take over in a heartbeat. Gwenyth had a hard time imagining something that could cause such a scenario, but simply accepted the notion of anything being possible before handing them their food.
"By the way," she began after finishing her grilled cheese. "I was wondering, are we heading for the Grand Line, now?"
"We probably could, now that we have a better ship," Zoro answered.
"That might not be such a good idea just yet," Nami warned them, hardly looking up from her writing. "I mean, unless you guys want to eat cheese sandwiches for the rest of your lives."
"Hey, hey, hey! First of all, they're called grilled cheese sandwiches, thank you very much!" Gwenyth snapped at her companion. "And second, I never agreed to be the official cooker person. I sew, I sing, and I make really loud noises when I'm scared. That's it. But back to my question, are going there now or not?"
"We need to fill one more position before we head to the Grand Line," Luffy decided, sounding shockingly serious.
"This galley has all the equipment," Nami smiled. "I'll do it, for a price."
"If you know how to do it, why were you gonna make me do it?"
"Well if they ran out of Berry I wouldn't do it anymore. So then it'd probably be up to you."
Gwenyth mumbled something along the lines of that being sexist bullshit, but Zoro's opinion overshadowed it. "Either way," he started, "that's an essential skill on a long voyage."
"Well, I dunno about you guys but I'd rather have somebody who knew what they were doing and didn't charge us an arm and a leg. No offense, Nami."
"Then it's agreed!" Luffy declared. "I pirate ship must have a musician!"
"HUUUUUH!?" The group collectively gapped at him before spinning into a cluster of shouting and accusations. Usopp thought he was nuts, Nami couldn't believe she actually thought he was going to say something intelligent, Gwenyth began re-questioning her life choices for what must have been the forth time that month, and Zoro had jumped up screaming that this was not a pleasure cruise.
"Pirates have to sing, don't they!?" Luffy asked looking to Gwenyth who, being a singer, would obviously understand his logic.
"THIS ISN'T DISNEYLAND!" She shouted, not caring that he wouldn't understand the reference.
"You don't need music to sing to?"
"I NEED FOOD TO EAT!"
"COME OUT AND FIGHT, DOGS!" A loud voice shouted from somewhere outside followed by loud crashing and thrashing. "I'LL MURDER THE LOT OF YOU!"
Gwenyth, who was coughing like crazy from choking on her own saliva, watched Luffy curiously bolt out onto the deck. Nami and Usopp swarmed to the door, peeking out the window as inconspicuously as possible.
Usopp shushed Gwenyth. "Quiet down! Are you trying to get us killed!?" He whisper-squeeled.
The seamstress glared daggers into the back of his head. She had been startled by the sudden voice and had swallowed saliva down the wrong tube. 'Quiet down' he said. It wasn't like she had any choice in the matter. Regardless, she tried to keep the 'help-I'm-dying' noise down.
"How many are there?" Zoro asked casually from his spot against the wall.
"One, I think," Usopp answered, not quite pissing himself with fear.
"Let Luffy handle it."
Gwenyth took in a deep breath, held it, and let it out as another loud crash thrashed against the ship, making her jump and squeak. As incredibly, pathetically girly as it made her feel, she was just glad she hadn't started choking again. Zoro got up and headed for the door, grumbling under his breath. The other two jumped out of his way as he stepped outside. Gwenyth, no longer dying but incredibly curious, followed the swordsman.
"Huh?" He said pausing. "Well, I'll be... It's Johnny!"
"Johnny?" Gwenyth repeated, a warm, but tight feeling spreading in her chest. That was a fairly common name back home. What was such a normal sounding name doing in a place- a world- like this? Peeking passed Zoro's shoulder, Gwenyth wondered if she'd see someone similar to herself. Maybe in jeans with a T-shirt of their favorite band, or wearing the styles of this world, but clearly different and out of place. Maybe they were from her world? Maybe she wasn't as alone as she had thought? But as she looked at this Johnny character, who had stood up and shouted happily at the sight of Zoro, he was clearly, clearly not from her world and very much at home in this one.
Gwenyth's heart sunk to the bottom of the sea. She wasn't sure why. 'Johnny' was just a name. Not a particularly special one in her world, just an average, everyday name. Hearing it had brought her hopes up for some reason. Maybe, somewhere in the depths of her soul, she had been wishing for someone to be in the same boat as her. A companion who could truly grasp what she had been going through from their own firsthand experience. An average, normal someone who'd had a relatively average and normal life before being sucked into some strange, pirate-infested world. Gwenyth almost laughed at the pathetic, lonely void in her chest, but fought against it. Feeling that annoying, persistent sting in her eyes, she knew a single laugh would lead to a storm of sobs.
"GWENYTH, DON'T JUST STAND THERE!"
The seamstress jumped. Blinking down at the navigator, two salty tears fell from her eyes as Usopp and Luffy toppled up towards her. She wiped the water from her cheeks and in no time at all she was shoved into the galley by the both of them.
"Hurry, Gwenyth! Hurry!"
"Wha-?"
"We need lime juice, pronto!" Usopp shouted, rummaging through the kitchen drawers.
"Why!?"
"Nami said so!" Luffy answered, moving from cupboard to cupboard. "We've got to save Yosaku!"
Gwenyth rushed to the refrigerator, shuffling through the rows of produce. Though very confused, she was happy for the sudden distraction from her emotions.
"Found 'em!" She announced pulling out a small plastic bag filled with the green citruses.
"Bring them over here!" Usopp set down two types of juicers. Gwenyth snatched up the one she (vaguely) knew how to use and quickly got to work. Luffy put a large mug-like cylinder on the table and began squeezing the juice out by hand while their sharpshooter keep up to speed with the second juicer. The three cheered each other on and filled the bucket to the tiptop in a matter of minutes. Gwen insisted on carrying it out, fearing that the other two might spill the greater majority of the liquid in their jumpy state.
They rushed out ahead, calling for her to move faster. Ignoring them, she continued to walk at a slow, balanced pace. Constantly eyeing the juice as it sloshed recklessly from side to side. She moved down to where a wheezing body lay bleeding upon the deck and Gwenyth turned pale at the sight of the poor, dying man. Nearly dropping the lime juice. Thankfully, Luffy snatched the mug out of her hands before it could slip from her grip.
"It's scurvy." Blinking several times, Gwenyth realized Nami was speaking to her. The blonde was only just able to pull her sight away from the body to find her friend's worried eyes upon her. "With luck, he should recover in a few days." The seamstress nodded as Nami's attention moved to an excited Johnny, whom she told not to call her 'Sister'.
Gwenyth didn't know the person, but she was glad he would survive. It was scary to see someone dying in front of your eyes and not being able to do anything to stop it. The sudden sight of the man bleeding to death had made her already uneasy stomach flip a few more times. She quietly thanked the high heavens for Nami's knowledge of the aliment and how to cure it. Though when she turned back to the boys, whom were relentlessly pouring the entire bucket of juice down the man's throat, she wondered if he would just die of asphyxiation instead.
"It's caused by poor nutrition," the Navigator continued to explain, though Gwenyth had missed most of it. "Fruits and vegetables rot on long voyages..."
"Wow! You're like a doctor!" Luffy stood, quite amazed with her seafaring wisdom.
Usopp nodded in agreement. "I always knew you were a brilliant woman."
"THESE ARE BASIC THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW IF YOU EXPECT TO SURVIVE AT SEA, MORONS!"
"Well, that's why we have you here." Gwenyth smiled at her but it was cut short when the practically dead man jumped into the air shouting thanks to lime juice. The girl screamed bloody murder and dove behind the navigator in fear. Luffy and Usopp nearly fell over laughing, but Nami smacked them in the back of the head immediately after reprimanding the celebratory brothers.
After they properly introduced themselves as Zoro's former bounty hunting partners, Yosaku violently lost consciousness and gurgled out more blood. Which, from the eccentricity of the gagging, nearly caused Gwenyth to faint herself. She immediately excused herself, fled to her bedroom and toppled onto her mattress. Praying to the higher powers for the strength not to vomit all over her new bed. Nami came down some time later and told her they were heading out to find a sea cook. Gwenyth fell into a deep sleep a few minutes later.
I really hate the greater majority of this chapter, so I'm going to end it here.
Anyway, who's hungry? 'Cause I know this nifty little restaurant we can stop by with the most charming cook...