A big thank you as always to EmikoBankotsu and OriginalDrumy for their thoughtful reviews! And a very happy belated birthday to EmikoBakotsu!

Southernwood

Constancy; jest.

The island was called Southernwood, and after personally seeing to the eviction of their jerk of a mayor, the crew learned that Southernwoodeners loved to party. Never one to turn down a celebration themselves, the crew eagerly joined in with the revelries.

And then they brought out the stick.

Chopper was the first to notice, being one of the few members of the crew not actively participating in a Southernwood drinking game.

"What's that for?" he asked Robin, the woman usually a beacon of knowledge.

"Perhaps it's for beating people with," was her cheerful response.

Chopper wailed and hid behind her legs. "That sounds awful!"

Having overheard their conversation, Terra turned from her place at the drinking table and shouted to the gathering crowd, "Oi! What's with the big stick?!"

"It's for limbo," the woman beside her at the table replied with a carefree smile. "Haven't you played before?"

Terra felt a weight against her back as Luffy eagerly joined the conversation, hanging over Terra's shoulder like the monkey he was. "It's a game?" he eagerly asked.

"It is! Two people hold the pole in the air, and you have to walk under it without touching the pole or the ground. If you do, you're eliminated. They'll lower the pole every round, so it gets harder to keep your balance. Eventually, there's only one person left, and that's your winner!"

"Luffy, you're not allowed to play," Terra immediately declared, gripping onto Luffy's wrists over her shoulders as though such an action would ever stop him from breaking away. "You've got an unfair advantage."

"But I wanna play!" he whined, dropping his head atop Terra's and squishing down atop her white locks. "No fair! Terra!"

"I think we should let the Captain play," Robin helpfully contributed with a smile. "We can all agree not to use our Devil Fruits."

Terra felt Luffy's jaw rubbing against her head as he vigorously nodded. "Yeah, yeah! Let's all play!"

"But Luffy, can you even stop yourself from being rubber—"

"LET'S GO!" Luffy cheered, cutting off Chopper's question and jumping from Terra's back in one go. The girl yelped as she was dragged along towards the gathering crowd. His free hand reached out, stretching into the crowd, before snapping back with a flabbergasted swordsman in tow. "Zoro, you come too!"

"What the hell?!"

Terra laughed as she bumped shoulders with Zoro, the two of them dragging behind their Captain while an amused Robin and Chopper followed behind. "We're going to play limbo."

"What the hell is limbo?"

"It's a competition to see who is the most physically capable," Robin educated with an easy smile, her gait nonchalant as she followed the wreckage their Captain wrought. "The last person standing is the winner."

"LUFFY!" came an aggravated shout before a long leg smacked across Luffy's face, sending him into the ground. Terra was immediately swept from his grip, and up into Sanji's arms. "Stop manhandling Terra, idiot!"

Terra laughed, and tucked a white ranunculus behind Sanji's ear for his trouble. "I don't mind," she said, and laughed again as she realized that Zoro had been dragged down with Luffy. "We're going to play a game, are you going to join us?"

"Anything for you, my rosebud!" he cooed, twirling in a circle to make Terra laugh one more time before he put her down.

Luffy popped up from the ground, his enthusiasm undeterred despite the new dirt across his face. "LET'S GO!"

"Aye, aye," Terra responded as the crew followed their energetic Captain towards the game.

Two women were already holding a stick high into the air, a small group of people easily walking beneath it— some even held their hand in the air to show off how much room they had. Terra watched as the group circled around one of the women to go through again, the stick held just a little lower this time.

"It looks pretty easy so far!" exclaimed Chopper. The crew looked down towards him, all of them with thoughts of his short stature in their heads. "I bet I can win!"

"Maybe if Luffy wasn't competing," Terra muttered, giving Luffy a dirty side-glance. Louder, she asked, "Should we make this into a bet?"

"Did someone say bet?"

Chopper and Terra screeched in fright as another voice suddenly joined them from behind. Unsurprisingly, it was Nami with a mischievous smile on her face.

"Is 'bet' your summoning word or something?" Terra asked, a hand held to her racing heart. "If you're going to participate, then you have to play with us."

"I don't think so," Nami sniffed. "Someone needs to be the impartial judge and game master."

Zoro rolled his eyes, his arms crossed over his chest. "I think that's what the people holding the sticks are for."

"I'm gonna win!" shouted Luffy with both his arms raised in the air as he sprinted to join the game.

Terra huffed. "Well, of course the guy with rubber bones is gonna win. Ten beri on it!"

"Deal!" responded Nami with a snap of her fingers. In the blink of an eye, she was curling around Sanj's arm with a coy smile. "Sanji-kun~! If you win for me, we can go on a date!"

"D—DATE?!" yelped Sanji with hearts in his eyes. "Anything for you, Nami-swan!"

And then he was gone, a cloud in his wake as he chased after Luffy towards the game.

"That was dirty," accused Terra with a poorly concealed grin. She raised a hand to cover her laughter. "You could have just asked and he would have done it for you. And what happens if he really wins?"

Nami raised her chin smugly and winked. "Then I'll be ten beri richer."

"You're betting on that shitty cook, then?" asked Zoro. "Pfft."

"It's not a bad choice," Robin suggested, her smile sly. "He does have strong legs— possibly the strongest on the crew."

Zoro disagreed, if his scowl was anything to go by. The next thing they knew, Zoro was gone as well.

"Ten on Zoro," announced Robin with a pleased smile. "Shall we join them?"

Terra laughed and looped her arm through Robin's. "You're both monsters," she said fondly. "Nami, are you sure you won't join us?"

"Yeah, Nami!" added Chopper, tugging on the redhead's hand with both hooves. "It'll be fun!"

"Well, I guess I could…" Nami said, looking pleased with the attention. "But no, I have to be a judge! I'll wait here; you can leave your drinks— and your wallets— with me," she finished with a wink.

"Like a dragon with her hoard," Terra said with a shake of her head. "C'mon, Chopper, let's show 'em how it's done."

"Alright!" cheered the short reindeer as the rest of the gang made their way over to join the game.

The limbo bar was still held above their heads, and Terra quickly tugged Robin along to make their first trip beneath it. With her short stature, Terra's head didn't even come close to brushing the top.

"You might have an unfair advantage of your own," Robin teased.

Terra shrugged with an easy smile. "Hey, being a shorty had to come in handy sometime."

A pair of hands brushed against her waist, and Terra turned to see a grinning Sanji moments before he deposited himself between the two girls, his arms slung over their shoulders. "Now, ladies," he started, "Just because Nami-swan and I are going on a date, doesn't mean my affection for you will wane, alright? In fact—" hearts popped into his eyes, the cook already lost into his own thoughts. "Why don't the four of us have a picnic together? Just me and my three beau— urrk!"

"Lay off it, you pervy cook," Zoro grumbled from behind, having grasped Sanji's collar to pull him off Terra and Robin.

Three heads tilted back to make it under the bars, Terra the only one short enough to make it a second round without ducking.

"Where did my horse go?" she asked, looking through the crowd to try to find a familiar Straw Hat.

"Oh, that idiot?" Sanji said between the heated glares he shared with Zoro. "He jumped and hit the bar right away. He's already been disqualified."

Terra smacked a palm against her face. "Seriously? My captain is so dumb…"

"Perhaps now you have a chance to win," said Robin with a peaceful smile, three heads ducking once more.

"Right!" said Terra with a snap of her fingers. She looked back at the boys to stick her tongue out at them. "I'm taking you losers down!"

"Yeah, right," scoffed Zoro.

"I feel very conflicted right now," whispered a stricken Sanji.

"Let's do our best!" came a chipper voice, and they looked down to see an unbothered Chopper beside them.

Terra pouted and crossed her arms. "Alright, I'll admit that I forgot about him."

Four heads ducked, three backs arching to make it under the lowering bar. Chopper proudly carried on with a whistle.

"He does have quite the advantage in games like this," observed Robin. "Perhaps I was too hasty to place my bet on Zoro."

"You bet on Zoro?!" cried an aghast Sanji. "Robin-chan! You don't have faith in me?"

"She's too smart for that," Zoro smugly replied.

"No way will I lose to a moss-head like you!"

Two heads ducked, and three bodies hit the ground.

"What happened?!" Chopper cried, his voice muffled into the dirt and grass.

"You dirty cheat!" fumed Sanji, jumping up with his face red and furious. He struck a leg out at Zoro which was quickly parried by a sheathed sword as the swordsman jumped to his feet as well.

"It's not my fault you can't stay on your feet!"

Terra giggled as she subtly retracted her vine. "It looks like we've both lost the bet, Robin."

"It would seem that way," she agreed, pretending not to have noticed Terra's interference. "Nami will be pleased."

"Happy wife, happy life," Terra joked as the two girls hurried on, leaving their squabbling crew-mates behind them. "A grumpy Nami isn't good for anyone."

"You would rather that the rest of the crew be grumpy?" asked Robin, gesturing with a hand to where their Captain sulked on the outskirts of the game.

Both women ducked, Robin bending backwards with ease.

"They'll get over it," responded Terra breezily. "Luffy will play again next round, and he might even act like less of a dummy— though, that is a big ask…"

Robin laughed. "Would it make you happy to win?"

"Well, yeah!"

Terra leaned back just as every standing participant suddenly tripped, hands having sprouted at all their feet. Robin let the bar hit her chest as Terra straightened up.

"Congratulations," she cheered among the groans of the downed players. "It looks like you won!"

Terra laughed gleefully, taking in the sight of the dropped crowd and the furious expressions of their crew-mates who realized that the girls had been cheating all along. "Robin, you're officially my new favourite Straw Hat."

Robin smiled, her head tilting and her hands clasping behind her back. "It's an honour."

"Let's get a victory drink," she demanded, looping her arm through Robin's once more and pulling her away from the game before the two could face any coming backlash. "Before Nami comes looking for her money!"

They dashed away, the sound of giggling and falling cherry-blossoms left in their wake.

Is limbo already a thing in One Piece? If it is, it wasn't memorable enough for me. Thanks for reading xo