Chapter 11: Dinner and a Princess

"Geez, I wish I knew where the kitchen was on this blasted ship," Nami said, leaning against the wall and clutching her loudly complaining stomach. She'd finally gotten them to a safe spot to lay anchor. There were storms close by, but they would be safe for a few hours. Between getting them through one storm after another and frantically jotting down notes to make maps later, she wasn't sure how long it had been since she'd eaten, other than that it had been too long. She was concerned that she might pass out before she found the kitchen.

"Nami? Are you all right?"

She turned her head to see Sanji poking his head out of a room, looking concerned. She tried to straighten, sure she didn't look too impressive leaning against a wall and looking like she might keel over at any moment. "Um, just trying to find some food. I skipped lunch and dinner…and maybe breakfast too."

Sanji cursed under his breath striding out of his room. "I'm sorry, I should have thought of that. You've been working harder than any of us all day and now it's late into the night. I should have thought of that. I'll go get—" He paused. He'd been about to say that he would go get the chef, but Nami was starving. To get the chef he'd first have to find him, then wake him, then he'd have to come up here…Meanwhile, they were only a few doors away from the kitchen.

He remembered cooking for his mother long ago when she'd been so sick. The results might not have been chef-quality, but she'd said she'd liked it. It had seemed to give her a little strength during a time she had been very weak. He hadn't cooked anything since she'd died, but surely he could come up with something acceptable.

"Come on," he said, holding his hand out to Nami. "The kitchen is this way."

He led her down three doors, then set her on a stool. "You sit there while I make you something, okay?"

"You know how to cook?" Nami asked. "I didn't think royalty did stuff like that."

She looked so impressed that Sanji wanted to declare he was the best cook in all of Germa 66…but it would become apparent in mere moments that it was a lie since she'd already sampled the cuisine the Vinsmokes normally ate. "It might be a bit of a stretch to say I can cook, but I can throw a few things together."

They were both silent as Sanji went to work. Meat was important. Nami should have protein after all the running around she'd done…and vegetables were good, right? They were supposed to help you be strong and a lot of dishes had meat and vegetables. They were like the building blocks of cooking, weren't they?

He stared down at the meat and vegetables as they cooked on the stove. You were supposed to use spices. That made things taste better, but beyond salt and pepper, he was at a loss for what to do. He knew the chef back home used a lot of spices. They always got new spices after conquering a new country, and the same dish made with different spices could really change the taste…but he was too afraid to try any. He didn't want to make the food inedible and make Nami have to wait even longer for something to eat.

He glanced at Nami, who looked like she might pass out and turned the heat up on the stove, wanting everything to cook faster.

Soon, Nami had a plate before her…but the vegetables looked soggy and wilted and the meat was black on the outside and pink on the inside. Clearly, turning up the temperature was not the way to cook meat faster, and turned vegetables into a mushy mess. Still, maybe it tasted okay? Food didn't have to look pretty to taste good…He changed his mind when Nami took a bite and winced.

"Sorry," he mumbled, his face turning red as he stared at floor. How pathetic was he? Had he really thought he could impress Nami by cooking for her? It was something he hadn't done in years. His talents laid with assassination and information gathering. He should stick to what he was good at.

"No, it's fine," Nami said, taking another bite. "Beggars can't be choosers, right? It's better than starving, I can tell you that."

"You've been starving before?" He asked without thinking. Nami's face shut down and he wanted to kick himself. He hoped he hadn't sounded like he was talking down to her. Oh, look at the poor peasant who didn't have enough food to eat when she was little. Why was this so hard? Men and women were meant to be together. It was a law of nature, the way the species perpetuated itself, so shouldn't it be easier?

Nami's mind flashed to the days when Arlong withheld food from her until she finished all the maps he wanted. She hadn't known a person could go that long without food and still survive. But Sanji didn't look like he'd meant anything by his comment. He actually looked a bit like a puppy that had been kicked. It wasn't a look she expected to see on a prince's face.

"I never would have thought a prince would make a meal for me just because I was hungry," she said softly. She felt Sanji's eyes on her, but kept her focus on her food.

Sanji was so surprised at Nami's words that he almost asked her to repeat herself. His heart felt like it would burst out of his chest. How did this woman make him go from feeling rotten to like he was floating in mere seconds? He clenched his fist as his gaze went to the terrible food she was eating. If she appreciated him making her food, then he wanted to do it again. He could get better. He would make time to spend in the kitchens so he could watch the chef.

The ridiculous thought crossed his mind that he wanted Nami to only eat his meals. He was a prince and a general of the Germa 66 army, he didn't have that kind of time…but that didn't mean he couldn't cook for her on special occasions. If he managed to make food worth eating. He didn't want to present her with something so unworthy of her again.

~.~

"Unfurl the aft sails and furl the fore sail!" Nami ordered as she prowled the ship. No one questioned her now. If only she could always sail with the same crew for these voyages, though she supposed Judge wanted everyone to learn to follow her orders as navigator. She hoped the rest of the trips would go was well as this one had, but doubted her luck would hold.

The ship was much steadier than it had been during some of the other storms, but tornados were appearing right and left. Without her training at Weatheria, she never would have been able to handle a crazy storm like this.

They crested and a wave and when they crashed back down, Nami felt the change in air pressure. The waves were much calmer here, almost as though they'd entered another sea. She frowned as she looked back to see the tornadoes still going strong. It was almost like there was a barrier, the change was so abrupt. Hearing gasps of awe, she turned to look in the other direction and gaped as well.

They could see a port that probably belonged to Yashta, and it wasn't that far. The storm had masked how close they were. Elaborate buildings guided in gold and gems lined the port. She nearly salivated at the thought of how much she could steal from a place like that…but they weren't supposed to land. Judge had been clear that this was meant to be an exploratory voyage and didn't want Yashta to be suspicious of Germa's intentions.

Seeing what looked like a royal ship approaching them, she thought that might be a little difficult.

"You there!" A man in a white suit with gold tassels hanging from his shoulders called. "You are trespassing on these waters. For what purpose have you come?" His eyes kept straying to the jolly roger, giving Nami the impression that the man knew exactly who they were.

"Our apologies," Sanji said, moving to front of the ship. "We didn't mean to end up on your shores so abruptly, but we got turned around in the storm." He turned to gesture toward Yonji. "My brother has heard of the renowned beauty of your princess and wanted to see her for himself." He shrugged. "I'm sure you are familiar with the folly of youth. Young ones in love can hardly be restrained from following their hearts."

She wondered if it was just her imagination or if Sanji's eyes had strayed toward her as he spoke.

The man's eyes cut to Yonji and narrowed. "Was it the fame of our princess that brought you here…or the fame of our wealth, Germa?"

"Germa!?" A tinkling voice that reminded Nami of a wind chime called out. "Did you say Germa?! Which prince is it?"

The man groaned and covered his face as a young woman with long blond hair reaching to her hips rushed to the rail of the ship, clutching the edge of it as her gaze moved frantically around the Germa ship.

"Come, little brother," Sanji said, smirking as he held his hand out. "Your princess wishes to gaze upon you."

Nami was glad that the Vinsmoke siblings' enhancements didn't include laser vision, because she was pretty sure that if Yonji could have killed Sanji with a look, he would have.

Stiffly, Yonji marched to stand beside his brother. The blond princess squealed before clasping her hands to her chest and jumping up and down. "It is you, it is! I can't believe you're here." She leaned across the rail, before grabbing the arm of the man in the white suit. "He's too far away! I can't see him properly."

Staring down his nose at the green-haired prince, the man said, "If you have truly come to meet our princess, surely you would not object to joining us for a meal." His gaze roved around the ship and his lip curled in disgust. "Just you. No one else is invited."

"My brother would be delighted to join you," Sanji said, clasping Yonji's shoulder. "I'm sure such a meeting is even more than he dreamed of. All he'd been hoping for was to catch a glimpse of you."

Yonji jerked away from Sanji and muttered something under his breath, but went across when the Yashta ship placed a boarding plank between their ships. Not that he had much choice.

"Well, it appears we'll be able to have a quiet evening without Yonji around," Sanji said, a bounce in his step as he offered his arm to Nami. "May I escort you to dinner?"

"All right," Nami said, smiling as she took his arm. Sanji seemed so pleased that Yonji wouldn't be present as he had for most their meals that Nami wondered if Sanji had been hoping to run into the princess from Yashta.

~.~

"Our meeting must have been fated," Princess Clarisse said, clasping her hands to her chest and fluttering her eye lashes. "I've wanted to meet you for so long. I don't like weak princes, you see. The princess should be the soft one in the relationship. I admire how strong you are." She giggled. "And you're also handsome, of course. Green has always been my favorite color."

Yonji struggled not to gag as he sagged in his seat. Being trapped in a room with a woman like this was in his top three worst nightmares. And here it was, coming true. He wasn't sure he could survive the next hour or so. Dealing with enemies and rivals was so much more fun when he just got to kill them.

Captain So and So who's name Yonji had already forgotten, cleared his throat and glared down at Yonji.

"Is the food not to your liking?" Clarisse asked in concern. "I know Yashta's cuisine is different from the Germa Kingdom's. I'm sorry, our chef should have been more sensitive to your tastes after you came all this way—"

"It's fine," Yonji brushed off, straightening in his chair. "The Germa Kingdom has food from all of—" He barely stopped himself from saying all the places they'd conquered. "All the places we've visited. We are a traveling kingdom, after all. The only one in the world. We've gained a lot of knowledge and culture from that."

"I know," Clarisse said. "I know all about you and the Germa Kingdom. It must be so romantic to have visited so many places." Right. Because tearing down walls and blowing up towns was always romantic. "But, I think that would get tiring after a while. It would be nice to have a stationary place to go home to that was always there for you, don't you agree?"

Ugh. Was she trying to look alluring? Princesses in poufy pink dresses with necklines up to their necks couldn't look alluring to him if their lives depended on it. Not that he would have found her alluring in anything. This woman embodied many of the things he hated about princesses.

"It's not what I'm used to," he said, trying to be tactful. He wasn't the politician among the brothers. Ichiji was the one sent out for that kind of thing. "I'm not sure what I would think of it. It might be nice."

"Maybe you won't know until you try," Clarisse said, her hand reaching for his arm. He forced himself to stay still and let her put her hand on him. Sanji would pay for getting him stuck in this situation.

~.~

"Have a nice evening?" Sanji asked with a smirk when Yonji returned. "Did you find your future bride tonight?"

Yonji growled under his breath and shoved Sanji, then he noticed that Nami was standing there as well. "Like I could ever be attracted to a weakling like that. She probably would have fainted if she'd been on board through any of the storms we've gone through in the past couple days. Why don't you tell Ichiji all about Clarisse since he's the one so set on marrying a proper princess."

"You don't want to marry a princess?" Nami asked, her eyebrows raised.

Yonji grinned, glad she'd asked. "If I could find the right one, but they're all too weak for my tastes. I'd much rather find a bride who can keep up with me." One who at least knew how to fight and could use science to her advantage. One who would be useful to Germa 66 and could go on campaigns.

He continued down the hall and called over his shoulder, "As a country known for its military strength, I think we princes should be focused on marrying powerful and useful woman like you rather than some princess whose most useful skill is her table manners."

~.~

Nami frowned as she watched Yonji leave. Like Niji and Reiju, he'd had no problem with Ichiji attacking her because she had dared to talk back to him when she didn't have royal blood. Had he really changed his mind about that? And, if he had, why?

"Sorry about that," Sanji said. "My brothers can be volatile sometimes."

"I've noticed," she said wryly, making him wince. "Though I suppose him not thinking only princesses are worthy of being married is an improvement." She paused. "Does it bother you that I don't have royal blood?" He hadn't given any sign that it bothered him, and just because she asked didn't mean he would answer honestly, but it didn't seem any of his brothers would have had a problem giving her an honest answer to that question.

"Delicate princesses aren't really my type," Sanji said. "I mean, they're fine, but I was dreading the day my father set me up in an advantageous marriage to the princess of some kingdom he wanted to ally with rather than conquer." Slipping his hand under Nami's hair, he brought a few strands to his hair and kissed the ends. "I much prefer my current situation."

The action was corny and ridiculous. Yet, it still made her heart flutter.