An unfamiliar swaying motion wakes you. Blinking your eyes open to an unfamiliar gloom, you don't raise your head at first. Your stomach feels empty, your throat parched. Your fur itches from where it touches something not air. You gaze around blearily.

Wood, similar to the houses in the town, stretches below, above, and on three sides. On the remaining side, a strange, shiny kind of stick forms a wall with gaps. You're stretched out along one wall. Lifting your head slowly, you look around better and notice two strange things against the shiny wall.

Sniffing, you can scent water and meat. Getting to your feet unsteadily, you pad over and look. Shiny rocks with hollows; that's the only thing you can think of. One is filled with fresh water, the other holds a large chunk of meat.

You give the meat a sniff; it hasn't been here long. You look up, past the open wall, but see no one. Taking a deep sniff, the scent of the five men permeates the air here, as well as a few more you don't recognize. Shanks and Beck are the most recent, though the others have been here at some point in the last day. There's a strangely salty tang to the air that reminds you of the salt water, but far stronger.

You give the water another sniff then lap some up. You pull back, swiping your tongue around your jaws. It might be fresh water, but it tastes nothing like a good rain puddle or the river or creeks.

Footsteps catch your attention and Beck appears.

He stops briefly when he meets your gaze. "Least you're awake now." He walks over and stands a foot away from the open wall. He cocks his head, his gaze running over you.

You hiss and back away, but quickly bump into the back wall. Your fur bristles, hackles rising threateningly.

His lips curl up and he gives an amused sound; it's a deep, throaty sound that doesn't sound aggressive. "We won't hurt you."

You blink and let your hackles lower. Your fur settles along your shoulders and you meet his gaze.

His eyes widen a little with surprise. After a heartbeat, he turns and leaves.

You dart forward and grab the meat before he can return, quickly ripping into it. It's not the best thing you've had, but it's better than carrion. And it's bloody; this surprises you.

You settle back where you woke up. You're cleaning your whiskers when Beck appears, this time with Shanks. You stop and watch them.

Shanks stops in front of the open wall. He kneels and looks at you. "I'm sorry we had to do that, but it was either us or the townsfolk."

Beck snorts. "Shanks, I know I said she understood when I said we won't hurt her, but I don't know if she'll understand that."

Shanks ignores him. "I think you understand more than we think."

You blink and stand up.

Beck's hand sits on the gun poking through the pelt around his waist. Shanks holds a hand out to him. Beck pauses, then slowly lets his hand back down.

You watch as Shanks lays his own hand against the open wall. Leaning forward, you sniff, then step back and sneeze.

He grins.

Beck sighs. "Captain, you're going to lose a limb doing that."

Shanks glances over his shoulder. "I don't think she'll attack Beck. Look at her." He waves a hand at you.

You watch them warily. Under your feet, the floor constantly moves. It reminds you of standing on a waving branch, except you're not at risk of falling off. Your fur stays smooth, your ears twitch a few times, and you keep your claws sheathed.

Beck cocks his head, then crosses his arms. "You sure about that?"

Shanks nods. "Let's leave her alone for now. I'll send Yasopp down to give her some more food later. I have to talk to Snake about our course."

Beck nods and Shanks leaves. When he's disappeared, Beck stands in front of the open wall and regards you for a moment. "Maybe you do understand us better than I thought."

You watch him turn and leave, but flick an ear when he looks back at you. He watches you for a second, then disappears. Letting out a low rumble of confusion, you lay down and close your eyes. You have no clue where you are, why these men took you away from your forest, but one thing is already clear.

They probably just saved your life.

"No! We are not doing that!" Beck's voice echoes through the opening, jerking you awake.

You shake your head, trying to clear your ears. It's been about four days since you first woke up in this confined space. Yawning, you try to pay attention.

"Beck, we have two sharpshooters and everyone else is armed to the teeth. It'll be fine," Shanks replies. "But the brig is too small. She needs to stretch, and this is our only option."

Yasopp hesitates. "Captain, Beck has a point. We aren't near the island yet."

Shanks groans. "And it will be another week because the marines are blocking the fastest route. It's cruel keeping her locked up that long!"

There's a pause. You stand and wait as two pairs of footsteps, quickly followed by a third, head for you.

Shanks, Beck, and Yasopp appear after a heartbeat. Shanks walks up to the open wall, something small and shiny in his hand. You recognize it as the twig they use to come in here.

Beck grabs his arm. "You know what will happen if she attacks someone, right?"

You flick your ear, blinking at him.

Yasopp shuffles his feet, glancing at you. "Guys, can't we just let her run around this room?"

Shanks looks at him. "Too many spare sails and equipment down here. She might panic and destroy something in a confined space."

You prick your ears, taking a step forward. Are they going to let you outside? You might finally see where you are! If you can leap to land, maybe you can race back home! Or, at least somewhere safer.

You still aren't entirely sure if they saved you or not, but you want out of here.

Yasopp eyes you nervously. "Guys."

Beck ignores him. "But letting her run outside? Some of the crew wouldn't be able to protect themselves against an animal this size."

You take another step.

Yasopp fidgets. "Guys!"

Shanks snorts. "I wouldn't let her alone, Beck! I'll follow her and make sure she doesn't bother anything."

You let out a low rumble and eye the shiny stick in his hand as he moves it towards the part of the wall that opens.

Yasopp takes a step forward, raising his hand. "Captain…"

Shanks ignores him and pushes the stick into a little hole along the wall. "I'm serious. You know I can knock her out with my haki if needed."

The wall opens a second later and you nudge it like you've seen the others do.

Shanks stumbles backwards in surprise.

Beck catches him, his eyes narrowed.

Yasopp pulls out a thick, small, shiny stick with a hole on one end; it looks like a mini gun. "Didn't you see she was right there?" He doesn't aim it at you, but you notice his hand tighten around it.

Shanks glances at him, then looks at you. "I didn't expect her to understand how to open the door, Yasopp." He speaks calmly, like he has any time he's come to see you.

Beck watches you as you slowly step past them. There's a hint of fear from Yasopp, but not the other two.

Sniffing, you follow their scents to an opening in the wall. Well, it should be open, but it's not. You eye it critically, then place your paws on the flat surface halfway up. A gasp sounds behind you as the door swings open and you step through.

Light footsteps follow you as you enter a narrow…what is this place?

The walls are wood, like your space, but it's far wider. One end holds another one of these openings; Shanks called them a door. You look the other way and see an uneven slope leading up. Sniffing, fresher air comes from there and you trot towards it.

"Shanks, don't let her out of your sight," Beck's voice calls.

Shanks makes a light, throaty sound. It sounds happy. A second later you realize he's laughing. "Don't worry, I won't."

You stop at the bottom of the slope. You recall the last time you moved on one of these. It was strange, but you were going down it. This time you'd be going up. Slowly at first, but quickly gaining speed, you step up each ledge until you reach another door, tightly shut. Sniffing around the edges, you nudge it experimentally. It doesn't move. Huffing, you stand with two paws on the door and push, but it stays shut.

Giving a low growl, you drop your paws and study it. It's like the other door, but there's a strange stick midway up to the side. You recall seeing those sticks before. If you hit it the right way, it should move.

You don't question how you know this, but try. You nudge it with your nose from underneath; nothing.

"Shanks, what's she doing?" Yasopp's voice drifts from the bottom of the slope. He sounds worried, but you ignore him. Fear scent drifts up, growing stronger by the second.

Shanks shushes him. Beck's scent gets closer; he must be with them.

You paw the stick and there's a soft click as it goes down. The door swings outwards. Bright light makes you squint. A soft hiss from two of the men sound.

"Captain…how did she figure that out?" Yasopp asks softly.

You step forward, blinking quickly, and stop when you can see what's around you.

A tall tree-like thing towers above you. Two more, one ahead and one behind, though a little smaller. The unusually straight branches have large, white leaves fluttering from them. Several humans, some on the ground and some on the branches, freeze when they stop you.

You flatten your ears at the fear scent. Out here, the saltwater smell is stronger than ever, but even that disappears as the fear grows. You take a step to the side, raising your head and looking around. Two jagged slopes lead to a cliff above you; you recognize Snake, as you learned he was called, at the round thing sticking to a strange stump. When he catches your eye, he starts but doesn't move.

You slink against the cliff, keeping an eye on the other men you can see. Your fur bristles along your spine, but you sense no hostility.

Murmuring breaks out as Shanks and the other two appear. One man, standing by regular, even vines, calls out, "Captain, can…can you explain this?" The fear scent from him isn't as strong, but you notice the tenseness in his legs; he's prepared to run if you get too close.

You turn and watch Shanks. Did he have two names? You knew Yasopp and Beck called him that a lot; did all these other men do too?

Shanks faces them. "You all know the marines are blocking the fastest route to the uninhabited island we were aiming for."

There's a low current of chatter. You shuffle your paws, the fur lifting along your spine momentarily.

"We'll be going around them," he continues. "That adds on another week."

"Why are we avoiding them?" someone calls out from the branches.

Looking up, you're surprised to see some people hanging from thinner, higher branches. There's a strange nest at the top of the tallest tree-thing; a man peers at you from there.

Shanks looks at Beck, who answers for him, "We could take them easily, but it's at least five ships. There's a big risk of someone getting hurt or the ship getting damaged. And do we really want a wild animal aboard if the ship needs repairing?"

You flatten your ears at that. Ship needs…repairing? Was that like healing?

"But why is the lynx out though?" Snake calls down.

Shanks leans back, his hand resting on the long stick at his side. You'd noticed it before, but had no clue what it was. "I don't like the idea of keeping her cooped up permanently until we reach the island. I thought I'd let her out for a little while, then take her back."

You growl at that and several men turn to you in surprise.

Shanks and Beck exchange a look, then Shanks calls out, "I'll be out here as long as she is. She won't be a threat to anyone. Just go about your duties."

The fear scent gradually fades as the men turn back to whatever they were doing. You watch them. It's almost like watching a hive of bees. But you quickly turn and walk to a ledge not far off. Sniffing, the saltwater smell gets slightly stronger. Stepping up, you freeze and whine, your ears tight against your head.

Where's the land! You see nothing but water in this direction. You leap back down and quickly trot to the far ledge. Stepping up here, same view. No land anywhere in sight! Letting out another whine, you trot faster up the jagged slope to the upper ground and spot a ledge here.

Your legs tremble and you try not to pant, forcing down your fear with deep breathes. Surely there's land somewhere? You leap onto the ledge.

The water stretches out in all directions! From here, you can see ahead of you as well as behind. Flattening your ears, you press yourself against the ledge after jumping down. What is this place? A low whine rumbles through your chest and you flex your claws in and out.

Shanks, who followed you up the slope, leans against the side. His eyes glitter strangely. Watching him, your brain supplies the emotion; sympathy.

Snake glances at you a few times, his nervousness evident in his wide eyes, shifting stance, and constantly moving hands. Finally, he speaks to Shanks. "Is she okay?"

Shanks doesn't look away from you. "I think she's just realized there's no land, that's all."

You blink in surprise.

Beck appears after a moment, Roux behind him. "Captain, there's an island not far from here and we need to get more meat."

"Why, is something wrong?" Shanks asks.

Roux nods. "I just checked some of it and it's gone bad. I think we need to replace the barrel. Must be a hole in it."

You sniff. Meat? But what did they mean? Gone bad, like carrion? So it wasn't good to eat then?

Shanks frowns and stands straighter, hand on the stick again. "Alright. Snake, it'll take us a day to get there, right?"

"Yes captain, though we'll have to use the dingy to get to the docks and back," Snake answers. "Not unless you want the lynx escaping. And I don't think the town will appreciate that."

Dingy? Docks? The words bounce around in your head briefly. You raise your head and watch them. But they were going to land. Did one of those things help them cross water?

Roux looks over. "Oh, so you really let her out?"

Beck grimaces. "Yes. But just for a while."

You growl again and the four men exchange identical looks of surprise.

Shanks finally lets out a chuckle. "I think that will be easier said than done."

Roux just grins. "Let me do that. I have an idea."

Beck shakes his head and turns, tossing his words over his shoulder. "Someone is going to get scratched before the end of the day."

You flatten your ears and lash your tail.

Snake laughs. "Might be you, Beck," he calls after the retreating figure. Roux follows him.

You lower your head and watch as Beck disappears down the slope. He's not been mean, none of these men have, but you get the feeling he doesn't trust you. Why? Have you done something they don't like? All you did today so far was open a door.

Laying your head on your paws, you stay pressed against the ledge and watch the men move about the ship. Shanks sits on the ledge nearby, but keeps his distance. The golden shape on his head gleams and you find yourself staring at him after a while.

Something about him is strangely comforting. He occasionally glances at you, but watches the other men. Is this his territory, but he lets the other men stay here? Or is this more like the town? Where many people live but they have their own little territories and share the other spaces?

At some point he watches you, then stands and takes a few steps closer. You flatten your ears briefly and he stops. This happens a few more times until he's almost within reach. He kneels and speaks quietly at that point, startling you. "You don't want to go back down there, do you?"

You can't help letting out a soft whine.

He smiles. "You'll have to though. Just for a little while. If you keep behaving, maybe you can come out more."

You raise your head and meet his gaze. Behind him, you can see several men, and Snake, watching you both curiously.

Shanks moves; his hand reaches out slowly.

But before he can reach you, you let out a hiss. Before he can do anything more, you run to the far ledge and settle down. You back presses against the rough wood and you glare at him.

He watches you, but doesn't follow.

Snake laughs. "Gonna take more than an offer of coming outside to be able to get close, captain!" His laughter is echoed from some of the other men. Your fur bristles, but you quickly settle down as you realize they aren't being mean to him.

Shanks joins in, shaking his head.

You watch them, your eyes flicking from man to man. With each thing they say, each movement they make, you find yourself confused, curious, and strangely at ease. Something about this place seems familiar, but you can't place it. You've never been on a floating piece of ground like before, yet you don't feel sick from the movements. Walking the men move about the branches, you almost feel like you've seen people do that before.

Laying your head on your paws, you watch Shanks. He let you out, not once hurt you or threatened you, and even brought you food himself most of the time. In fact, you realize, it seems like he defended you today.

What an odd human.