When the cherry blossoms fall to the ground...
And the scent of perfume fills the air...
The air sparkles with a new life and light...
As the gates of Whole Cake Academy open for the day...
"Welcome to Whiskey Peak!"
The bus had come to a full stop in front of a large mountain range. The trees were large and full of life, with the green leaves twinkling in the sunlight. There was a small river leading to somewhere near the top. Rocky paths with arrows to show the way littered the terrain. At the end of the mountain, the two counselors waited for the girls and their one boy for a day in nature.
Baby 5 blew her whistle, waking up anyone who asleep on the bus. "Listen up everyone, today isn't a day where you can do whatever you want up here. Your teachers have given you specific assignments to compete while you enjoy a free day outside. Remember, if you need any help, you can come and ask me!" She gave them a smile. "I'll be happy to lend you my services."
The girls filed out of the bus one at a time. Nami gathered her things up while Luffy held her back open. Giving him a grin, she latched her backpack on and stood up.
"Hey Luffy, how about we team up? I think we could cover a lot more ground together." Nami asked, fiddling with her straps. "I understand if you have someone who you're-"
"Sure Nami, I don't mind teaming up with you."
"I knew it...wait what?" Her eyes widen as Luffy walked past her to get off the bus. "You actually want to team up with me?"
"Why not? We haven't had a moment together in a long time. Last time we were alone, Arlong and his bully friends were bothering you." He leaned against the railing of the stairs. "It would be nice to hang out again with you."
Nami felt herself physically get hotter as she stumbled out of the bus. The rest of the girls snickered at her actions, making her glare harshly at them. No way would she let anyone else see this side of her!
The group came over to the campsite where the two female counselors awaited them. The smaller one waved at them, her face showing excitement.
"Hiya Whole Cake students, I'm Mary and this is my friend Sunny! We used to go to your school before graduating and can't wait for all of you to explore the nature trails of Whiskey Peak! Now, I'm sure you all have partners in mind, but we did the liberty of pairing you off before you got here."
Nami's face fell as she darted her eyes towards Luffy, who was scrunching his eyes at Mary and Sunny. What if they were on two different teams and didn't get time to spend with each other? What if he paired up with someone else and forget about her entirely?
However, Luffy wasn't paying attention to Nami's social dilemma at the moment. Mary and Sunny were coming around to give everyone a compass and a additional writing utensil. When they came to him, the duo stopped and gasped before hugging him.
"I KNEW YOU LOOKED FAMILIAR! MONKEY D. LUFFY WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" Sunny exclaimed, pressing him against her chest.
"Sunny, you are going to choke the poor boy!" Mary screamed, trying to pry him from her friend's busty chest.
The entire group watched in silence at the scene.
"Excuse me, but do you know him by chance?" Nami asked politely, masking her annoyance a bit.
"We used to babysit this guy when he was little." Mary explained, most of the girls surprised by this. "His father hired us to take him to school, play with him, and even take care of him when he didn't come home. For awhile, we were this guy's mothers."
"Mary!" Sunny snapped at her, pointing down to the young boy in her bosom. "He got bigger and more handsome. Too bad he's too young to properly treat him with new love."
Nami watched this display with jealous evident in her eyes. So these two were his nannies for a short period of time? How was it that Luffy was always surrounded by equally beautiful women?
"How is it that this boy knows all these women?" Alvida pondered aloud, crossing her arms and glaring at Mary and Sunny. "Seems that I have some more competition to deal with."
Porche took pictures of the heartwarming display. "I find it kinda sweet! Look at how they hug him." Once again, her poor head was bashed in by Alvida.
"Why do we get pulled into all these schemes by Linlin if we can barely get rid of the guy due to his connections?" Ulti whispered angrily into Maria's ear.
"We can chalk this one as a failure for this one. Linlin will understand and she can't exactly use this one against us." Maria twirled a cigarette in her fingers. "We only have to worry about her for another week before we can go back to Wano. We can always kill him another time."
"Careful Nami, we're almost to the top."
"How about you be careful? You nearly tripped back there."
Thanks to Mary and Sunny, they allowed Luffy to team up with Nami, much to Alvida's chagrin. After filling up their water bottles, they took the northernmost path upwards. It was mostly peaceful, the path littered with squirrels and rabbits. Flowers not from their region grew wild and spun around the trees. Luffy took plenty of pictures for Carrot, the girl telling him about her love for rabbits. Nami was able to track the cloud patterns and temperature as they hiked more up the mountain.
"Are you okay? Sure you aren't having a heat stroke?" Luffy inquired after they decided to take a break on the cliffside.
"Certainly not! I've been drinking plenty of water!" Nami assured him, taking another swig of her water bottle. Sure, she wasn't getting hot, but she was feeling a bit fatigued.
Luffy saw this and decided to help her out. Reaching into his bag, he pulled out a bag of beef jerky and handed her a piece. "You can't just have water, you also need to have salt in your system. This jerky should help with that."
Nami took the piece, taking a small bite of the salty snack. "You sure know a lot about hiking in the mountains. I never would've thought you'd be so nature savvy."
Luffy stared at the sky as a cool breeze flew over him. "My mother used to take me out in the forest and we would have mini adventures. She would lie to grandfather that she was training me when we would have picnics in the woods. Sometimes my brothers would come along with us and we would make a whole day out of it." His eyes closed with nostalgia. "I miss her so much..."
Nami held her hands together as she stared at the forlorn look on Luffy's face. His life was a mystery in itself, learning more about it whenever they talked. His mother sounded like a kind lady with a love for her son. Hearing about her made her think of her mother and sister and how she was happy to have them in her life. At least she still had her mother though...
"Well let's keep going! When we get to the top, let's break for lunch." She got up and finished the rest of her jerky piece. "Mary said there was a small spring up there where we could refill our water bottles up."
Luffy was pulled from his memories as he got up as well. Giving her a big grin, he nodded. "Yeah, let's get to the top! I bet the others gave up and are going back down."
The view was breathtaking.
Overlooking the entire valley, Nami and Luffy stood at the top of Whiskey Peak with tired looks on their faces. True to their word, a small freshwater spring was at the top along with a whole field of flowers. Nami squealed, letting down her guard slightly to roll around in the flowers. Laughing, she realized she had some petals in her hair and shook her head to get the petals off.
"Hey Luffy, take a picture of me in these flowers!" She called out to the strawhat boy who was overlooking the valley from the edge. When he didn't come over, she gave him a worried look. "Luffy, are you okay?"
The young man stared out into the valley with tears in his eyes. The same feeling of nostalgia washed over him once more as he recalled a memory of his mother.
"Okaasan! Watch me! Watch me!"
"I'm watching Luffy, be careful up there!"
The woman sat underneath a large tree in the middle of the forest where she and her son would go to get away from their crazy lives. This was her sanctuary, a place where she hung out before meeting Dragon. Now she could share this place with her dear son, whom was climbing up that tree she laid upon.
Luffy grinned, hanging like the monkey he was from one of the branches. His mother was reading while he fooled around in the tree. He was determined to get to the top and show her the view. While he knew his mother would never climb trees, she was afraid of heights, it was comforting to know that she was at least there to play with him. Plus, she brought a plethora of meat based sandwiches for him to eat. Truly, she, Aunt Rouge, and Aunt Makino were great women that were in his life.
"Okaasan, I'm coming back down!" He shouted, shimmying down the tree and landing on his bottom. "Ouch!"
The woman sighed and took him onto her lap, wrapping her arms around him. "I told you not to climb down so fast. Now your bottom is going to be sore again."
Luffy sniffled, but kept a straight face. "I'm okay! I'm a big boy and big boys don't cry."
His mother ruffled his hair and kissed his cheek. "You know, it's okay for you to cry. I think it makes you feel approachable to women when you show a bit of emotion."
"Eww...why would I want to talk to girls?" Luffy made a small face of disgust. "They are gross!"
"You say that now, but wait till you get a little bit older." Reaching over, she took a roast beef sandwich out and handed it to him. "Here, I made enough for your big tummy and for mine."
Luffy grabbed the sandwich from her hands and stuffed it into his mouth. "Dank Uff."
"Um...Luffy are you okay? I'm sorry for making you cry."
Luffy snapped out of his memory when he noticed Nami standing at his side. She handed him a handkerchief for him to wipe his now wet eyes with. Gently taking the cloth, he wiped his eyes off and sniffled a bit at the now resurfacing memories of his mother. Sitting down on the ground, he allowed Nami to place a hand on his cheek in a comforting manner.
"I'm sorry Nami, I didn't mean for you to worry about me. I must look pathetic crying in front of you like this." Luffy admitted, trying to hold his tears inwards.
"No! I mean, I don't think you look pathetic for crying." Nami admitted, waving her hands in front of her face. "I was just worried that you were upset about something I did."
"Why would I be upset about something you did?" Luffy faced her, making Nami feel giddy. "You are kind, brave, and call me out when I mess up. If anything, I think my mother would've love to meet you."
This...these words weren't at all what she was expecting. Luffy was vulnerable, showing his true self to her right now. Nami had no idea he felt that way about her. He literally told her that his own mother, a woman he admired, would've loved to meet her. This was quite an honor in her eyes.
No words came from her mouth as she fumbled to get the bento out for them to eat lunch. Handing him his, she quietly opened hers and started eating slowly, enjoying the view sitting by him. Luffy watched her as she laid her head on his shoulder like they did on the bus. This small action made him smile warmly.
When I looked to my side...you were there, Nami...When we ate bento together...it was so delicious...When we both said that the scenery was beautiful...I was glad I didn't hold back. I'm glad that I didn't hold back...and that I said that I wanted to go with you, Nami.
Later, at the Charlotte estate, a certain pink haired female was growling to herself as she received news from Kalifa that Ulti and Black Maria failed to get rid of Luffy again. Frowning, she slammed the laptop on her desk down and stomped downstairs. The rest of the family heard her angry stomps and avoided her as she made her way to the kitchen.
Pudding stopped stirring the pot of hot chocolate when she noticed Linlin open up the fridge and take out an entire chunk of confetti cake. This wasn't good, she was starting to stress eat again. Even the annoying Flampe had stopped pestering her for sweets to get up from the table and run to her room. The only ones in the room now were now her and their large sister Smoothie who was reading the newspaper at the table.
Linlin stabbed the piece of cake and munched hard into the sprinkles. Pudding gave Smoothie a look to ask her what was wrong. Rolling her eyes, she placed her newspaper down and took a long swig of the orange juice that was by her side.
"What's wrong Lin? I haven't seen you this upset since that time your favorite ice cream parlor closed down." Smoothie said, watching her sister stab the cake to oblivion.
"If you must know, I've had a vendetta against a student in my school." Linlin said, smacking her lips against the frosting that covered them. "He's been a thorn in my side since day one and he drives me crazy! All his talk about wanting to be friends to all the girls and he managed to get some on his side. Then he had the nerve to get me suspended for all the fake news I've spread around the school for years! I've never been caught before and since he's been here I've been losing supporters." Going back into the fridge, she pulled out another chunk of cake. "What annoys me the most is that he hasn't raised a single hand to me, threatened me, or even made me feel uncomfortable! I can always use that against any guy that has tried me, but he's such a gentleman that he doesn't hurt girls!"
Smoothie sighed, regretting asking her about her problems. "So your problem with him is that he's a nice guy who did nothing wrong, but expose you for all the crap you did to other people?"
Pudding nodded in agreement, pouring the chocolate mixture into a mold. "Seems like you have a problem with the way he wants to make friends. He's such a nice young man to me, not unlike that chivalrous Sanji who constantly tries to date me. I think you can't handle the emotions he's trying to throw your way."
Linlin looked up from her cake and gave her sisters a glare. "Where are you going with this?"
Smoothie shrugged. "Seems to me that, and I may be wrong, you have a crush on him."
Pudding quickly grabbed the paper towels and stuffed her ears as the ear-splitting scream coming out of Linlin made the entire household come downstairs, some with worried looks and others with looks that could kill. Katakuri, who had been chatting with Brulee in living room, immediately rushed into the kitchen with a combination of both.
Linlin's eyes had turned entirely red as she slammed her plate onto the ground. "I DO NOT HAVE A CRUSH ON THAT GUY NOR WILL I EVER CONSIDER GOING OUT WITH HIM! I WILL GET RID OF HIM AND ANY TRACE OF HIM WHEN I GET BACK TO SCHOOL!"
"Who the heck is she talking about?" Cracker asked Katakuri who just rubbed his forehead in annoyance.
"Some guy at school she has a crush on apparently. A nice looking and nice acting guy too."
Next Episode:
Linlin: I'm back everyone!
Luffy: Nice to see you back!
Linlin: Cram it Monkey! This weekend is family weekend and my family is going to take you out.
Luffy: Good luck with that! My brothers are coming to check things out and I get to show everyone around.
Linlin: Just wait to see what I have planned for you when we get to the grand finale...
Next Time: Let's Celebrate Families, Ace and Sabo return!
Yamato: I'm up to your antics Linlin. I won't let you harm my little brother.
Hey everyone!
IT'S HALLOWEEN SEASON! GUESS WHAT THAT MEANS?
*Ahem* It means that One Piece, Many Hearts will be getting their first holiday special!
The title has already been chosen and I'm bringing my best to make it fun!
"The Scary Halloween Theatre! Perona and the Goblin King!"
That's right, Perona is joining for a limited time story starring her helping out the girls at Whole Cake put on a Halloween Play.
Stay tuned for more info!