Authors Note: Thank you SO SO much for reading and bearing with me over the years! This is the final chapter for the entire story so I hope you all enjoy the ending as much as I do! Thanks again!
CHAPTER 40
New Crew Members! Next Step for Ari and Zoro!
The next morning, the Strawhat crew pulls themselves out of their hangovers and prepares to set sail. The women of the island as well as Ari and Pheonix volunteer to help them load stores of food onboard. As the hours of work pass, Ari finds herself looking over at Zoro more than once and also more than once, he looks over at her. After a few hours, when the final barrel has been stored below decks in the store room, the Strawhats begin their goodbyes to the island. Sanji gets as many kisses as he would like, Brook doesn't see any panties to speak of, and luckily the rest of the crew is fairly well behaved as far as pirates are concerned. Ari and Phenoix, still sticking together, stand side by side at the start of the pier. Marguerite also stands close by as members of the Strawhat crew walk down the pier and up to the ship.
"So," Pheonix starts, "where do the Flute Pirates go from here?"
Ari sighs. She didn't even think of what to do from here. "I don't know honestly."
"Honestly," Pheonix says, "I don't want any part of it."
Ari whips her head to face Pheonix, shocked. "What do you mean you don't want any part of it?"
"I mean," Pheonix continues, "that I won't have any part in you giving up on whatever that is." Pheonix waves a hand in the Sunny's direction where Zoro is standing on the deck and looks back to Ari with an exasperated expression on her face. "If that means that the Flute Pirates are disbanded, then that's fine with me." Pheonix smiles.
"B-but," Ari stutters, "I told you that it's not a big deal. Plus, we just got reunited and I-"
Pheonix interrupts her with a deadpan look. "You've been staring at him this whole time." Ari opens her mouth to refute, knowing that whatever she says won't be true, when Pheonix pipes up again, "Listen, I know what it's like to think I have something I don't." She rolls her eyes at this and Ari goes quiet, knowing exactly who she's talking about and how wrong she was about him. "But that," Pheonix pauses and gestures up to Zoro again, "whatever it is you guys have, it's real. And I know what real isn't."
Ari considers this.
Pheonix places a caring hand on Ari's arm. "Just talk to him. At the very least, see if he feels the same and go from there."
Ari looks from Pheonix up to Zoro. Surprisingly when she looks up to him, he is looking back at her. He starts at the sudden eye contact, clearly caught staring, and turns around not so subtly.
Pheonix nudges Ari again, physically this time, and Ari finally caves. She walks up the pier, reluctantly leaving Pheonix behind to face the source of the butterflies building in her stomach. She climbs up the ladder rung by rung, struggling more than normal due to the slight shake in her hands. You're just talking to him Ari… there's no need to be so nervous. Ari thinks again back to their kiss. They haven't spoken since then and Ari suddenly fears that with everything now calmed down, he might be regretting it. She reaches the top and swings over the railing, her feet softly thudding on the deck. Zoro turns in her direction and right when they make eye contact, instead of ducking away Ari holds his gaze. She makes it a point not to look away, even for the small walk over to where he's standing. Her face flushes deeper as she approaches closer and once she's close enough, a small bout of happiness erupts as she sees a slight blush on his cheeks as well.
Not exactly sure where to start she says, "Hi."
"Hi," he responds. It seems he also doesn't know where to start. Mercifully, Zoro saves her from the awkwardness by speaking first, "I've been meaning to thank you."
Ari cocks her head in confusion.
Before she can say more, Zoro elaborates, "When I was first training as a swordsman, there was this girl I competed with. Her name was Kuina." Ari's eyes open wide in surprise at the sound of her old friend's name. "She opened up to me one day and told me that it was in fact another swordswoman that inspired her to start her training despite her father's wishes. I found out later that that swordswoman was the Fluttering Swordswoman. I never found her real name though, until now, that is." Zoro looks up from his speech into Ari's eyes and he moves forward to hold onto her hands. "However indirectly, you are ultimately the reason that I became the swordsman I am today. So, thank you."
Ari is quite speechless, so all she manages in acknowledgement is a small nod.
"One day, the promise I made to her will come true and I will become the greatest swordsman in the world." Zoro looks back down to her tiny hands, still being held by his.
Ari looks up to his face at his words, thinking them over. Wait… if Zoro is still alive… I haven't seen Hawkeye… does this mean… does this mean he won? "Zoro…" Ari starts, putting the pieces together.
"Hmm?"
"If you're alive, where is Hawkeye?"
"He's dead."
"So you won the fight?"
"Yes…" Zoro responds, still not understanding what she's getting at.
Ari starts jumping up and down in excitement and squeezes his hands a little tighter. "If you won the fight with Hawkeye, then that would mean…" She eyes him again, hoping he'll catch on.
Zoro's eyes go wide as he finally realizes what she's getting at. In a whisper so quiet, it barely registers in Ari's ears, he says, "I'm the greatest swordsman in the world…"
"Say it again!"
He repeats himself, louder this time, "I'M THE GREATEST SWORDSMAN IN THE ENTIRE WORLD!" At this he picks her up, swinging her around in a large hug with the both of them echoing each other with their laughter. Finally, he sets her down, still holding her close and they notice that other members of the crew have gathered, having heard the commotion.
"Wait, so is that what that slice below decks was about?" Nami wonders, thinking about to their fight with Vice Admiral Momonga.
"Yeah, he cut right through the ship," Zoro confirms.
"At least that took care of Momonga for us," Usopp says. "Not that we weren't perfectly capable of defeating him ourselves," he adds defensively.
"What do you mean that took care of Momonga?" Ari asks.
"We just happened to be on the right end of the ship when it was cut," Nami clarifies. "He was positioned just right so that when the sword sliced through the ship, it sliced him in half along with it."
Ari releases a breath that she didn't realize she was holding. I had forgotten all about Momonga, but at least now the bastard got what he deserved. Ari looks up to the sky and sighs with relief. She looks around the ship at the Strawhat crew surrounding her and remembers why she came onto the boat in the first place. I can't possibly ask him to leave his crew for me… these guys… they're good people and he deserves to stay with them… they're family. As she's looking around, she sees Sanji coming up to join them with a lady on each arm. She looks closer and realizes that those two ladies are Marguerite and Pheonix! They talk soberly to one another and Pheonix looks shocked at whatever he is saying.
Finally, they come within earshot and Ari hears Sanji say, "With that family after you, you'll need some protection. I'm sure if we ask Luffy he'll be okay with it." He looks over to Marguerite too and Ari notices that Sanji saves his lovey-eyes solely for Marguerite.
Luffy also takes note of their presence and jollies over to them, exclaiming, "PHEONIX, MARGUERITE WHY DON'T YOU GUYS JOIN MY CREWWW!"
They all cringe at the sudden loud sound and Sanji adds to the two ladies, "See, I didn't even have to ask." The girls nod and burst out in laughter together. He smiles and slides his one arm off Pheonix's shoulder to continue walking on with just Marguerite as Ari approaches.
"So…" Ari says, taking one last curious glance in Marguerite and Sanji's direction, before facing her best friend. "It looks like this is it. You're joining their crew?"
Pheonix looks at her, bittersweet. "It looks like I am. I've always wanted this kind of freedom." Pheonix takes in a deep breath of fresh air and looks to the sky. "It's that desire that led me to become a pirate. But for you," she sighs and faces Ari once more, continuing, "you never intended this life to be your future. I know you. Sure, you loved the thrill, but you haven't seen your family in years."
Ari looks down at this, knowing what she's getting at. I'll have to face them sooner or later.
"You have an opportunity now, with him," she says and gestures to Zoro. "He's from the same village as you, isn't he?"
Ari thinks about this for a second. If he knew Kuina, then I guess that means he is from the same village as me. But how would Pheonix know about this? Add it to the mysteries, I guess. Speaking of mysteries… "Random question," Ari starts, "why did Ali call you Victoria? Is that your real name?"
Pheonix sighs, knowing she has no choice but to fess up. "Yes, that's the name I was born with. But Pheonix is my real name, at least to me." She shrugs. "I became a pirate to get away from my family, so I needed a new name. So they wouldn't find me as easily. And new hair too, thus the new haircut of red and orange." Her look turns somber. The Strawhat crew moves over to them and Pheonix whispers under her breath, "looks like it didn't matter though, since it seems that they hunted me down anyway."
Her whispers were still overheard by the crew, despite Pheonix's efforts. "That's why you have us!" Nami exclaims, sauntering over. "As long as you're on Luffy's crew, we'll keep you safe." Luffy and the rest of the crew nod their heads in support.
Pheonix's eyes brim with tears. She shakes them off and turns back to her best friend, holding onto her shoulders, creating a small bubble of privacy for them to talk. "I have a new life now. And you can too." She nods her head towards Zoro again and Ari looks over to him.
"You don't understand, I can't just ask him to leave them." Ari looks around at the crew once more, clearly so happy to be together. It's then that she notices Zoro's only a few feet away now and Zoro clearly overheard their whispers. Her face flares with embarrassment as Pheonix lets go of her shoulders, leaving to be with her new crewmates.
Zoro comes closer to Ari and addressing her concern about asking him to leave, he asserts, "You don't have to. I've already spoken with Luffy. My goal on this crew was to become the greatest swordsman in the world. And now that I've reached it," he pauses to take her hands in his once more, "I have another goal to reach." He looks into her eyes meaningfully.
Ari looks deeply into his, searching for even a shred of doubt. Finding none, she embraces him as the rest of the Strawhat crew cheers. She pulls back from the hug and kisses him hard on the lips. He kisses her back with just a much fervor, grasping her hair as he does so. Finally, they break apart and the cheers die down. Ari and Zoro take in the crew's joyful faces and they both know in that moment that staying together is the right thing to do. Ari looks again at Pheonix, who is doing the one-foot-hop contest with Luffy, Usopp and Chopper and she doesn't think she's seen her best friend so happy. I'm gonna miss her…
Pheonix notices Ari looking over at her, so she hops back over to her and hugs her tight. "Promise you'll write me?"
"I will," Ari responds.
"And respond in a timely manner?" Pheonix teases.
"I will," Ari laughs.
The two besties pull apart, tears in their eyes.
Finally, after they celebrate their newfound destinies, the Strawhat crew sets sail with two brand-new members: Marguerite and Pheonix. Zoro and Ari stand hand-in-hand on the shore. They watch the ship until it disappears into the horizon.
"So," Ari starts, "what do we do from here?"
Zoro considers this. "Well, I would like to go back to my island and start a dojo, but what would you like to do?"
"I want to be with my family," Ari responds. Then, she remembers that they're from the same village and a thought occurs to her. "Wait, Zoro," she puts her other hand on his arm. "Why don't we start the dojo together? We're from the same village so we can both get what we want."
Zoro's eyes light up at the idea and he turns to face her completely, his face inches away from hers. He whispers mischievously, "The world's greatest swordsman and the world's most dangerous musician starting a dojo together," he inches his face even closer, "sounds like a good idea to me."
Ari moves closer to kiss him, but he puts a finger on her lips to stop her momentarily as he says, "Let's promise this right now… that we will train the best students in the world, both in swordsmanship and music."
Ari's eyes water at the thought of also training students in music. The fact that he was the one to mention it makes it even more special. She nods in agreement, promising, "I promise."
Zoro removes his finger from her lips and right before kissing her he says, "I promise too."
The two of them stand there, swaying as they seal their promise to each other.
"To Shimotsuki Village," Ari breathes.
"To Shimotsuki Village," Zoro replies.