Chapter Text
A couple of days after the party they had weighed anchor and set sail in the direction of the Grand Line. She had said goodbye to Nojiko, Genzo and everyone else, wondering if she would ever see them again. The fate that had brought them together and then separated them immediately was unfair, but she was aware that to realize her dream there was no other way than to leave.
She had finished packing up her things in what had once been her room and would now be her room for a long, long time, and then went out onto the deck to check the course. Luffy had called her immediately, guiding her to the stern, where Zoro, Sanji and three wonderful trees full of mandarins that they had planted in large white pots were waiting for her. The boy with the straw hat had then asked her what she thought of that little piece of home that would accompany her during that long journey and she, observing them in amazement one by one and delicately touching one of the hanging mandarins as if she wanted to caress it, had responded with a simple but sincere “It's perfect”. At those words the three boys looked at each other, pleased with their work. Even Zoro had let out a smile and in doing so had looked into her eyes.
Next it was Luffy's turn to receive his surprise: a large sail with a skull wearing a straw hat on it. He had screamed and shouted for about ten minutes straight, then the adrenaline had subsided.
Now everyone was doing their own tasks (or almost): Sanji was in the kitchen preparing something nutritious, Luffy was sitting on the goat-shaped figurehead observing the vastness of the sea, Usopp was working on his slingshot ammunition and she was continuing to study the map of the Grand Line in the hope of understanding how a river could flow upwards on a mountain. Zoro remained sitting on the ground, not far from her, with his back resting against the railing and his eyes closed. He seemed apparently dormant, but with someone like him you never knew.
In an attempt to find some clarity amidst the confusion in her head, she abandoned the map on the barrel that served as a support and approached the parapet a few centimeters from the swordsman. She breathed in the salty air and let the breeze caress her face, blowing her hair back. It was then that Zoro's voice broke the silence.
- Is there any problem?-
Then he wasn't really sleeping.
- Just thinking-
- About what?-
- To a possible logical explanation of what is shown on that map-
- Sometimes there are things that have no logic-
- And what would they be?-
- For example, while I was unconscious, I dreamed that you abandoned us. When I woke up I discovered that it hadn't just been a dream. How do you explain it?-
That revelation that came out of nowhere shocked her, so much so that she was unable to reply. She stared at him dazedly with wide eyes: was it possible that that strange alchemy between them was such that they were somehow connected even in their subconscious? What Zoro had just told her confirmed that special bond that she had always felt with him, more than with any other member of the crew.
- But if there is no meaning then what do we do?- she finally asked.
- We just accept it. Or we rely on fate-
- It doesn't seem like the right solution to enter the Grand Line-
- Then find another one -
- You're not helping me!-
- I'm the first officer. You are the navigator-
After saying that last sentence, Zoro closed his eyes and went back to his fake nap. As for her, she tried to contain the anger that boy was able to provoke in her when he acted like a know-it-all, but she failed in the task.
- I hate you- she said through gritted teeth and a low voice, hoping not to be heard.
- You always have three more friends left. Better than before, right?-
There it was again, the power he held over her: a single sentence from him could change her mood in an instant. Her nervousness disappeared, giving way to a giggle.
- Four friends. I said I hate you, not that you're not my friend-
How funny destiny could be at times: until a few days before she didn't believe she could have any friends and now she was navigating with those who would become her second family, as well as the best friends she could meet. She was no longer the same sad and lonely girl as that evening at Baratie. Now she was the Nami she had always wanted to be.