~Queen Of The Sea~
5
Why She Calls Him Brother…
Rheddii lay curled into herself on the deck of are small boat.
Luckily for her the sea was calm now…
For the time being.
She had to be more careful now with her boat in the state it was in…
Otherwise she wouldn't manage to beat the waves.
"It's hot…" she mumbled to herself, "...Some water would be nice right about now…"
She chuckled softly and sighed…pulling her rose tinted goggled down to shield her eyes from the sun.
It's agonizingly slow traveling at a pace like this…
She thought to herself.
But it's better this way than the alternative…
She sighed.
I should take advantage of the good weather while I still can…
And hopefully catch a wind to speed things up…
Otherwise…
If I try to push my damaged vessel too much…
I could capsize.
And then…
I really will be lost to the sea.
An awkward grin curled on her lips.
"Damn…how lame…" she chuckled softly, "...Some Queen Of The Sea I turned out to be…" she sighed, "Down…before I even got up…Eh…Luffy…?"
Her smile weakened and her eyes slowly closed.
Lost to distant memories…
…Of a young girl.
Small…
Weak…
Crying on the cliff side with her knees to her chest.
"Become stronger Rheddii." he said to her, "Become Healthy…and then…come find me…out at sea." These were his words.
"I know you will…you brat. Because…you take after me."
These were the words of the man she knows as her father…
She'd never admit to it…
But she missed him dearly.
However…
She wasn't the only one who missed him.
There was a young boy wearing a straw hat…much too big for his little head…approaching her side and plopping down right beside her.
He missed him too.
"Don't be so sad, Rheddii…Shanks will be back one day, you'll see."
He said to her…
"He has to…there's no way your dad would leave you. Not forever."
Despite being in tears himself.
"...Luffy?"
Her voice was tiny and weak…
And strangled with sobs and coughs cutting her throat.
"I don't understand…why he left me…like this."
She whimpered.
"Don't worry…at least you're not lonely…right?" he said to her.
"You're here with me…and I'm here with you…and one day…we'll both sail away together…and kick your dumb dad's stupid butt~" he grinned, giggling, "And we'll do it together…!" he said to her, "Just call me Big Bro Luffy from now on~" he giggled while swiping his tears away on the back of is arm with a grin.
"Big bro…Luffy?" she said to him softly with a sniffle and a gentle giggle, "But…I'm older than you are…stupid." she sniffled.
This didn't bode well with Luffy–
Who stubbornly pouted and huffed back at her.
"YOU'RE stupid!" was his come back…
Leaving the two previously sobbing children to laugh…
And to cry…
Together…
Xxx
"Huh…no kidding…" Zoro said softly as he studied his new found captain before him.
"So, uh…you have a sister then?" he asked him.
"Huh?" Luffy blinked, "Well yeah…something like that." he shrugged, "I guess it's a little bit more complicated than that–"
"Complicated?" the swordsman huffed with a staggering sigh, "Doesn't sound all that complicated to me" he said, "So…what happened to that girl then?" he asked.
"Dunno." said Luffy, "I left a little while before her so she might still be waiting on our home island." he shrugged folding his arms, "I invited her to tag along of course…but…maybe she's still trying to hold out for her dad to come back…who's to say."
"I see…" said Zoro, "That…sounds like it kinda sucks." he sighed. "…But…whtever I guess."
Roronoa Zoro.
A man once held by a Marine base run by a ruthless captain known as Captain "Axe Hand" Morgan.
And his name surely followed his reputation.
In place of a right arm– he instead had a massive axe built into it…
And a metal jaw.
The man struck fear in the citizens of the town that fostered this notorious base…
And there were no good things about it.
Even his own men feared him.
Upon chance…
The man renowned as "The Pirate Hunter" Roronoa Zoro… just happened upon this small city.
Passing through and stopping for a bite to eat–
When the Marine Captain's Son, Helmeppo, decided to cause trouble.
In order to put an end to the ruckus, Zoro agreed to a man's deal, to have himself strung up on a cross in the execution yard for one month, in exchange for helping the woman who ran the restaurant he dined in, and her young daughter, stay safe from execution.
Though that deal was never made to be honored.
Having caught wind of the rotten plans of an early execution for Zoro–
Luffy decided to step in and make a scene.
Breaking the swordsman free and putting an end to the tyranny of Captain Morgan.
In the end…
Luffy ended up leaving Coby to become of the Marine base–
Under new management of course.
And now…Zoro has joined Luffy–
As his first mate–
The Newest– and currently only member of the young captain's pirate crew at this time…
With an ambition of his own to fulfill–
To be the greatest Swordsman in the world.
An ambition that Luffy admired.
After all…
Future King Of The Pirates?
He'd have nothing less than the best on his crew.
They weren't really traveling in much of what one could call style.
Their boat was a bit small–
But it got the job done.
During the trip the two shared stories and talked…
Getting to know each other a little better…
Which brought about Luffy's buried memories of a young girl he called sister…
"Yeah…it does kind of suck. But I'm not worried." Luffy laughed, "My sister loves the sea…It could be she just wasn't ready at the time, but– I know I'll run into her out here eventually~" he snickered, "She can't stay still for nothin'- and besides, she's got a dream too– one that can't be fulfilled on a dinky little island." Luffy giggled placing a palm down on the straw hat on his head to keep the wind from catching it, "At last~ Our Pirate Crew finally sets sail!"
"I got the feeling some interesting adventures are waiting for us." Zoro chuckled, "So you said this sister of yours had a dream that's gonna require her to take to sea someday herself, right?" Zoro asked, "So…what is it? If I can ask–"
"Huh? My sister's dream?" Luffy blinked before flashing a grin, "Oh yeah– her dream– as she likes to put it– is to be queen of the seas~" he laughed, "Whatever that means I don't quite get exactly– Only Rheddii can answer that one for you…after all…she's got her own view on what that entails…" he chuckled.
"I see…" Zoro chuckled, "Queen Of The Seas huh? Yeah…I suppose with a dream like that, it makes sense that she would have to go out to sea eventually." he laughed, "And… what about you, huh?"
"Me?" Luffy beamed, "I'll be King Of The Pirates…I know it."
"Come to think of it…you said that before didn't you? Hmm…" Zoro hummed, "You seem more than obsessed with the King Of The Pirates business." he points out, "Is there some kind of story behind it? Or any kind of reason at all?"
"No…no reason." he hummed, "It's just…"
"Just what?"
"...I promised someone– a while back." he said, "I swore that I would gather a crew, find the world's greatest crew, and become King Of The Pirates." he grinned, "And this straw hat knows the whole story~"
"I see…" Zoro chuckled softly.
"Now Let's Go~!" said Luffy, "It's time for us to set our heading for the Grand Line~!"
"Hm?" Zoro blinked a few times before something caught his attention.
"Sounds great Captain…but uh…"
"Huh? But what?" asked Luffy, "What's up, Zoro?"
"...You seeing that at all? Or is it just me?"
"Hm?" Luffy blinked curiously as Zoro pointed out to an odd mass floating out in the sea.
"What's that?" Luffy asked.
"Looks like a boat or something…" said Zoro, "...Think there's someone in it."
"What? Someone in it? Really?" Luffy blinked curiously and took to a higher point on the boat to try and get a better look…
"Yeah. Looks like a girl. With crazy red hair…"
It took some squinting at first–
But eventually the image came clear to him…
And it stirred up a bit of panic–
"Zoro– Quick–!" said Luffy, "Go fetch that girl! Hurry!"
"Huh!? Seriously!?" Zoro huffs, "Why!? You know her or something!?"
"Yeah I do!" said Luffy as he suddenly got serious, preparing a life line to try and attach to the free floating vessel, "That girl…is my sister!"
To Be Continued