Chapter Text
The man didn’t even notice the moment his wallet lightened by a few dozen beri.
It was a simple trick– easy to dodge if you weren’t distracted by the busy market surrounding you. Someone bumping into someone else in the middle of a marketplace absolutely crowded with vendors and tourists wasn’t all that out of the ordinary. It was also far too cliche– anyone who had dealt with pickpockets regularly knew their back pocket wasn’t a good place to store their cash– really, if the man hadn’t kept his wallet in such an accessible place, the girl wouldn’t have had the opportunity to lighten his load. It’s not like she even took any of his bills, although a plastic card pressed heavily in her palm. What a score!
It was a simple trick, but a reliable one– she learned from the best thief in all the Blues, after all. Reliability and simplicity, the execution, and then: a reward. The beri basics (ha!) of pickpocketing.
The girl pocketed the coins with a pout. Weighing the cash in her palm, it felt like barely enough for a night’s stay at even the shadiest of inns. Definitely not enough to bribe some innkeeper to rent a room out to a lone fourteen-year-old girl, either.
But that plastic card intrigued her. Maybe she’d gotten lucky?
Slipping the card up her sleeve, she continued pretending to peruse the stalls, pickpocketing some more loose change here and there. All from tourists taking up too much space on the path or hagglers with smarmy smirks annoying the poor vendors. Once or twice, sticky fingers found their way to the goods on display. A bracelet here, a pair of gloves there. Nothing in this marketplace actually held her interest, but hearing the outraged cries from the booths and tents as vendors tracked down stolen goods to each other’s tables while she slipped silently into an alleyway was far too amusing.
She even heard some disgruntled visitors cry out in the middle of the fray. The girl smiled to herself. If they weren’t such easy targets, they wouldn’t have been robbed! Maybe they should invest in cool backpacks with SUPER-secret compartments, like hers.
She sighed, hiding away in a juncture between alleys. The girl stashed her beri way down deep inside her backpack, shoving the coin purse past the false bottom, tucking her swiped beri alongside her previous funds. Who knew what she’d need it for!
Really though, who knew? She’d need a hotel if her stay here became longer than a few days… and when her rations ran out, she’d need to budget for food. Not to mention if she’d need some beri stowed away for bribes…
That can wait, she huffed. I have a lead.
The girl took a deep breath, adjusted her backpack, and held her head high. Then, she flicked out the strange card to inspect it in the diluted light of the alley.
Written plain as day in South Blue was a name, probably the man’s, as well as a strangely familiar-sounding location.
If lost, please return to: Kismet Island Public Library.
… Well, at least she knew what island she was on now.
★。／｜＼。★
When Sanji woke up, he knew it would be a great day.
“Alright, everybody, listen up!” Nami shouted, keeping one hand on Luffy’s vest and the other splayed on her hip. The light in the galley hit her form just so, making her appear even more angelic than usual. “We make landfall in half an hour, and we’re low on supplies.”
A wonderful, beautiful, lovely day.
“Which means as soon as we dock, it is imperative we restock as soon as possible,” Robin continued, Chopper curled up in her lap and listening intently. Sanji gave the reindeer a head pat as he filled up Robin’s coffee, the smell of her perfume mixing sweetly with the strong fragrance of the roast. She directed one of her gentle smiles his way and Sanji damn near properly swooned before reverting his attention to his dear Nami-san.
Restock days meant shopping. Shopping meant coupling up. Coupling up meant abiding by the buddy rule, never letting your ‘buddy’ out of your sight for as long as the task took. As the Thousand Sunny’s cook, he was the only one who knew the grocery list by heart. He had gone through the pantry and fridge last night, mentally tallying up the vegetables, spices, and (of course) meats he would need to pick up upon docking. Which meant he was due for a buddy.
As the Strawhat’s resident romantic gentleman, he was almost always picked by one of the girls to accompany them (or both, if they were intending for a ‘girl’s day,’ which he always graciously accepted becoming their pack mule for). No one exactly liked shopping with Luffy, Zoro or Usopp while supplies were low. An anxious sniper, sober swordsman, or unsatiated captain were never fun buddies.
So, obviously, Nami-san or Robin-chan would pair up with him for a lovely late-morning shopping trip. With Zoro’s attitude lately, and Nami’s grip on their captain, Sanji was a shoe-in to escort at least one of the Strawhat’s lovely ladies around whatever shops they found first.
Truly, fate was smiling on him. He was so high on cloud 9, he barely noticed the swordsman’s pouting face aimed in his general direction. Ah, right. Sanji had ignored every jab and barb the swordsman had thrown at him that morning, leaving Zoro to stew in his displeasure as he sipped his bitter morning tea.
Well, maybe next time that damn marimo wouldn’t wake him up in the middle of the night for– less than appropriate activities in the boys’ dorm. Sanji was needed up and at ‘em at six on the dot, if anyone wanted their meals on time, algae-brains included.
Maybe, Zoro would finally learn that wandering hands had a time and place (one that was not their shared bedroom or Sanji’s kitchen).
“Usopp and I are going to check out the distribution and general stores for repair supplies,” Nami’s glare was enough to shoot down Franky’s objection before the man could even speak. “Just write us a list. You're stuck on watch for what happened the last time we let you run off for supplies, Franky.”
Well, it wouldn’t be fair to hog Nami’s attention and time all to himself. And her bartering abilities were unparalleled– Franky would have more than enough material to upgrade the Sunny with in no time! The cyborg seemed to agree, sitting back down and sipping thoughtfully on his cola, muttering his list to himself. Robin-chan patted the cyborg’s shoulder with a disembodied hand.
“And Robin and I are going to pick up some more supplies for the infirmary!” Chopper chirped.
That was… fine. There were always off days where Sanji was picked over for one reason or another–if these lovely ladies decided they needed a reprieve from him, well. Who was he to object?
Besides, it wasn’t like he could argue with Chopper. It was a fifty-fifty shot between the reindeer using his big, cute eyes against him or getting a punch to the gut from a Heavy Point hoof.
Sanji should have known lady luck wouldn’t smile so brightly on him. Still, no Robin and no Nami didn’t mean his day was totally hopeless. He’d just have to make sure he wasn’t paired with–
“Which leaves Cook-san and Swordsman-san to go grocery shopping,” Robin said with another of her gentle smiles, completely unaware (or perhaps far too aware) that Sanji’s perfect day had just turned to complete and utter crap. Had she purposefully set them up together? Had Nami-san approved of the scheme, or did she come up with the idea to begin with?
Had the strange lack of bickering between them that morning solidified their decision, or had it been personally requested?
Zoro snickered into his tea, a mean grin spreading out on his face. Sanji forced his eye to stop twitching, giving Chopper and the girls a bright smile. “We won’t let you down, my doves!”
“Of course, Cook-san,” Robin nodded. “Navigator-san also wants us to meet back up at the ship around lunchtime, so please don’t let Swordsman-san get lost before then.”
Sanji nodded and spun around to start on the morning’s dishes. Maybe, if he took too long with them, Zoro would take his first nap of the day and Sanji could steal Brook away to shop with instead. If Sanji scrubbed at his precious dishware with a little more force than necessary, well. Maybe the grease was being a little more difficult than usual.
Now facing away from his nakama, Sanji could brood and pout in peace. Fate was a liar and a temptress and Sanji demanded a new fortune!
-ˋˏ✄┈┈┈┈
Her day had gone to shit, but at least the newspaper was only a handful of beri.
If the date on said cheap newspaper was correct, she was in a time she very much should not be present in.
- Twenty-four years into the Great Pirate Age… twenty-four years without a new Pirate King. She shivered at the thought, clutching her bag tighter.
The girl leisurely made her way to the library. She wasn’t very good with history, or remembering much beyond orders given to her and oaths she made. Battles passed in a blur and political moves went over her head. Surely, the library could inform her of the wrong time she found herself in.
Being in the past was difficult enough, but finding herself on an island she should not be stranded on, on top of that? Talk about bad luck. Granted, it was a strangely familiar one, even if she couldn’t exactly figure out why. ‘Kismet,’ while certainly a unique name, didn’t bring about any memory in particular for her. It just sounded like another Grand Line pit stop– but the longer the girl tried to remember why she had the barest semblance of deja vu, the less she seemed to recall to begin with.
The landmarks on the island were simultaneously familiar and not; as if she had seen a tree or house or something just similar enough on another place along the way, and her fried mind had stitched her memory of that place and the new environment together.
The same way an unassuming smell or name murmured in passing dredged up painful memories, the girl kept finding herself stumbling. It was quite frustrating to have the answer just inches out of her grasp.
Better not dwell on it, then.
With the library finally in view, the girl tucked the newspaper into her backpack.
★。／｜＼。★
Shit cook seemed to have a new stick up his ass everyday. This one must be particularly uncomfortable, because Sanji hadn’t even bothered to call Zoro any of his stupid nicknames insults for the swordsman.
Sanji hadn’t bothered to speak to Zoro much at all, other than a few muttered curses when the path inevitably twisted and Zoro found himself being dragged by the coat back towards the market stalls.
Zoro was starting to regret this… thing they had started together. Zoro could accept that Sanji was flighty, that he had only abandoned the crew under the (stupid) assumption that everyone would be better off without him and his secrets. Zoro could accept the man’s hang-ups about what felt like everything, from Sanji’s messy attraction to his neurotic compulsions. Zoro could accept and deal, because regardless of what he and Sanji did together, they were ultimately nakama, and Zoro accepted all of his nakama for things they couldn’t change. For the things they were scared about.
Even if it was themselves.
But if he was going to be ignored every other day in favor of chores or shopping or women they’d never see again, well. He could always find another cook.
… just not one like Sanji. Damn the stupid pervert-cook, making Zoro care. No amount of meditation or training seemed to cure the heart condition Sanji had given him, and since returning from Whole Cake and Wano, the pains in his heart only seemed to get worse.
It wasn’t like Zoro could tell anyone about it, either! It might speed up the fast track he was on to an early grave, but he’d rather have Traffy autopsy him to find the cause of death rather than admit anything, even to his nakama. Jinbei, Robin and Brook would give him knowing glances; Franky, Chopper and Luffy would encourage him to talk (or in Luffy’s case, fight) it out; Usopp and Nami would just laugh at him. Nami would hold his debt over him to get him to crack, or manipulate Sanji into talking first. The cook would never say no, even to a witch.
Zoro couldn’t decide which was a worse fate– being even more indebted to the thief, or having said thief meddle with the object of his (admittedly limited) affections. Either way, he’d shrivel up and die, Zoro was sure of it.
He could see his gravestone perfectly. Mihawk probably had one picked out just for him back at Kuraigana, ready for an engraving. ‘Here lies Roronoa Zoro. He died from being an emotionally-repressed idiot.’
Nami would probably add his funeral costs to his debt. And transfer his remaining debt to the love cook, who’d be stuck paying her back for the rest of his life. Not like the bastard would dare refuse.
Zoro huffed, watching as another cat rubbed its head against the blonde’s long legs, purring. The whole island, Kiss-something, was crawling with them apparently. The locals seemed not to mind– Zoro had even seen a few vendors feeding the damn things a few turns back– but the ones in the marketplace had started to coalesce around the love-cook, who was giving them his full attention.
“Oh my, they must really like you!” the woman manning the stall they were perusing giggled. Sanji flashed her a dashing smile as a few strays began to climb up his cargo shorts, heading to his hideous flower-print shirt.
Sanji carefully brushed the cats off, letting one stubborn little kitten stay. He let it settle in the crook of his elbow as he stood back up, petting the calico-patterned fur with one hand and reaching for their purchases with the other. “Ah, no, I’m sure they’ve just come to see your radiant beauty, miss!”
“They just want to be fed,” Zoro grunted, earning himself another bag of goods to hold. He took it without comment, naturally.
If Sanji was going to ignore him, well. Zoro was going to ignore the shitty cook right back.
“Fed, right,” the woman smiled at Zoro, despite whatever scary expression or lack thereof had settled on his face. She picked through her wares, finding some deli meat she could part with. The woman leaned over her stall table, and tore the turkey and pork into little pieces.
The crowd of cats clustered around the table, some trying to climb up the table cloth. Sanji laughed and blocked the strays, balancing the calico kitten on one shoulder to free up his hands and save the poor woman’s goods.
“Come now, don’t crowd,” The woman tossed a few pieces of torn meat to her captivated feline audience. “You’ll all get some, lovelies.”
The cats dove for each treat tossed their way, some even jumping up to catch the food before it fell to the ground. A few had started a small tussle over a large piece of pork, two cleaner-looking strays seeming to team-up on the cranky, roughed-up one with the pork prize in its mouth. Just before they could pounce, a strip of turkey had landed on one of their faces, the other cat immediately turning on them and beginning a new struggle on its ex-ally for the food. Zoro was pointedly watching the animals instead of listening in to the conversation the cook had struck up again. At least the strays were kind of cute.
“Marimo!” Sanji hissed, voice laced with some strange and terribly familiar emotion Zoro refused to unpack.
“What?!” Zoro snapped. “I thought you weren’t talking to me, shitty c–”
A stomach growling promptly cut Zoro off. A sleepy-looking tiger had trotted right through the marketplace, seemingly intent on joining the crowd of cats. Zoro put a hand on Wado’s hilt, but none of the market-goers seemed very fazed at the apex predator. Neither did the stall owner, who simply laughed and petted the animal as it forced its way to the table. Now that it was closer, Zoro realized it was just another kitten. Were baby tigers called kittens? Not that it was a baby, just. A very young cat. Maybe a teenager, or not even?
The calico on Sanji’s shoulder perked its head up at the newcomer. The cook looked between the two. “Oh? Is this a friend, little one?”
The kitten jumped off of his shoulder, landing on the table before scampering to headbut the tiger’s forehead. It took no notice, or simply didn’t mind, and continued to let the woman hand-feed it. The kitten meowed, but the larger made no move to acknowledge the little guy, too preoccupied by its meal.
“… is that… normal?” Zoro asked as he watched the display.
“For Kismet?” The woman asked back. “Yes. Anywhere else? Probably not.”
˚₊ ⋆ ☠︎︎ ⋆ ₊˚
“–and it should last us at least two months, what with all the shenanigans we get up to!” A familiar, cheery voice broke the silence of the library, the main door opening and closing. There were some shushing noises, then the reverberations of hoofs clicking on marble tiles and finally, a second voice, softer than the first. Another that the girl knew all too well.
“Whoops. Sorry, Robin.”
“Don’t be sorry, Doctor-san. Your excitement is adorable. But remember that libraries are museums of knowledge– we must treat them with as much respect.” the voices were getting closer now.
Repeating every swear she had ever heard in her life, the girl snatched her backpack up and snuck out of the back, hiding herself between the bookshelves. The two Strawhats made their way to the tables in the back, shopping bags in hand.
Oh, a stray thought crossed her mind. Must be a grocery run day.
When had they docked here? According to the fuzzy timeline in her mind, she wasn’t even sure the Strawhats should know about this island. It was in a vast expanse of ocean, mostly self-reliant, and reluctant of outsiders– or at least, that was all she had gathered about it so far from her research. It wasn’t in the New World, was it? Wasn’t that too early?
Robin looked so young… Chopper, even more so.
Of course they did, why wouldn’t they? Wouldn’t Robin turn thirty this year, or had that been last year? Did it even matter? This was the youngest the girl had ever seen Nico Robin, or Tony Tony Chopper for that matter. Oh, but didn’t that make things easier, if the Strawhats were here?
The girl hissed, fists balled. Damnit. Why hadn’t she paid more attention to Nami’s explanations of her personal maps of the Grand Line and beyond, or Robin’s gentle lectures on histories both long-past and present? Curse their soothing voices and her tendencies to fall asleep, damn it all to–!
“Hm?” the far-too-young Robin set her bags down at the table the girl had vacated minutes prior, seemingly interested in–
One of the books she had carelessly left out on the work table, and opened to such a suspicious page, too!
To hell, damn it all to hell!
“Huh? What is it, Robin?” Chopper chirped. The reindeer struggled to climb on to one of the human-sized chairs beside the work table, before one of Robin’s helping hands pushed him all the way up. “Oh wow, a book on devil fruits?”
“It seems someone was doing their own research,” Robin pointed to the section of interest. “How curious.”
“ ‘The Tik-Tik fruit is one of the most elusive diaboli fructum classified under the category of temporal manipulation. This particular subject gives the consumer limited but not insignificant power over the flow of time, typically for short periods.’ ” Chopper read aloud. “Oh, wow, that’s an ugly shade of yellow!”
Robin laughed softly. “Indeed.”
The girl had spent long enough spying on the Strawhats. Any longer, and Robin might open up an extra eye to catch her in the act.
“Excuse me, miss?” She shyly approached the library’s front desk, stolen card in hand and the picture of innocence plastered on her face. “I found this on one of the work tables in the back. I think someone lost it?”
“Oh goodness!” the librarian took the card, adjusting her glasses to scan it over. “Ah, thank you young lady. Kai is always losing his things… at least he left it somewhere someone could find it this time!”
★。／｜＼。★
“Give it up, we know it was you!” A thump punctuated some man’s shout, echoes of nothing good emanating from an alleyway nearby. Heavy footfalls followed, the murmurings of an answer to the loud man muffled by the thin strip of space.
Zoro looked over at Sanji at the same time the shit cook looked at him. Wordlessly, Zoro shrugged off the grocery bags he had diligently been carrying and matched Sanji’s pace as they stalked forward, towards the alley.
Curly had gotten in good with that seller. She’d probably keep their food safe from the stupid nosy island cats.
Sanji was light on his feet, sneaking his way further in, only to stop halfway through. Zoro bumped harshly into the man’s back, saving them both from toppling over by clutching Sanji’s waist with one hand and the alley wall with the other. Once steadied, Zoro removed his hand before the love-cook could kick it away.
He was supposed to be ignoring the other.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, sir,” Their attention was pulled back to the altercation in progress– a tiny figure pulling their hood tight. They stared at the ground, face shrouded in shadow and shouldering a comically large backpack. Between the large men bracketing them, their oversized bag, and the back alley, the figure only looked smaller and smaller in comparison.
The men took heavy steps forward. The same man spoke, a scowl on his face. “Shut up, brat. And stop lying to your elders!”
Sanji’s face furrowed, stupid dart-brow tilting inwards. Zoro huffed. If the girl was stupid enough to get caught by some pissed off vendors, it was no skin off their nose if the two pirates ignored it.
As Zoro made to leave, Sanji gripped the man’s coat before he could take another step. Zoro levied another glare at the cook, but Sanji wasn’t paying attention. Zoro looked back, annoyed.
“You were the only streetrat roaming around this morning,” the second man spat. “Suddenly, you come strollin’ in through town, and half of my buddies are down hundreds of beri and the other half have their goods stolen!”
“I didn’t steal any goods!” the child shouted back, before realizing their mistake and shuffling back into the wall, making themself look tinier.
… or appearing to.
“So you did rob Mako of his beri!” The first man grabbed the figure’s hood, showing just how much bigger he was than the girl he was harassing. She couldn’t be older than fifteen, with such a slim and unassuming build. “Cough it up, or we’ll return the favor!”
Zoro relaxed, leaning against the brick wall beside Sanji. Now he could appreciate the other’s flair for dramatics, if only in his head. This kid was playing at something, and these two bozos hadn’t put two and two together yet.
“Do we look like idiots to you, or what?” The man continued before the girl could even think of a response. “handing over forged beri– you're still a thief, little girl!”
“forged?” She asked, confused for a moment before realization etched its way over her face. “Oh, the dates. Right…”
Zoro huffed. How could someone mess up the dates on counterfeit beri?
“Now, you’re going to hand over what you took,” the second man spoke again, tearing her hood down. “And then you’ll get on your knees, and beg us for forgiveness.”
His accomplice cackled, nodding. Zoro just watched on, waiting for the girl’s facade to drop.
Oh, and to keep the love-cook from jumping the aggressors.
“Just wait a minute,” Zoro murmured, one hand resting back on Sanji’s waist. The cook tensed under him, one leg raised just a hair. Ready to rip Zoro a new one at a moment’s notice.
Sanji grit his teeth. “There is a child in danger, and you expect me to sit back and watch?”
Zoro pressed his palm flush against the cook’s waist, squeezing just enough to be reassuring. He leaned over Sanji’s shoulder, nodding towards the scene before them. “ She’s not the one in danger.”
Sanji made a confused hum, but lowered his leg.
The scene before them had barely changed. The men had the girl kneeling, but no money had been exchanged yet. The girl kept a deathgrip on her bag’s straps, despite the aggressors trying to rip it off her back.
“Let go, you little bitch!”
“Do you wanna make us teach you the hard way, brat?!”
“Oh?” she sounded disinterested, compared to the situation. “Is that what you were doing? Teaching me?”
Her attitude only enraged the men further. They yelled in unison, talking over each other while making vague threats. The girl sighed, yawned, and shifted to kneel on one knee, ready to get up with the other. The men only grew angrier, practically foaming at the mouths.
“Hey! We’re not done with y–”
A swift kick to the groin shut up the first man. He was barely able to let out a pained whimper before veering hard into the alley wall, clutching himself. The second man shouted, ready to grab the girl, but found himself empty handed.
The girl had moved fast. Clearly , she had been trained, and used that training to sweep the feet of her second opponent, practically materializing behind him before dashing off again, out of sight.
The man landed on his head, just shy of hard enough to concuss him. Zoro huffed a laugh. He had been right.
“Well then, if you’re so fond of lessons, let me teach you one,” The girl flipped into a handspring, kicking the kneeling man into his prone accomplice. The force of the movement caused something to fall out of one of the pockets on her bag. With matching pained groans, the men fell unconscious in a pile of bruised limbs.
She found the fallen object, kneeling as she brought it up to her face, inspecting it. Sanji finally relaxed, leaning into Zoro’s grip.
Just as Sanji was about to go and check on the girl, she broke out into a sprint, in the direction of the less inhabited side of the island, backpack in hand.
Oh, well.
“See? I told you.” Zoro let his hand linger on Sanji’s side. “She had it handled.”
Sanji huffed. “No child should be picked on by lowlife adults.”
He made no move to leave Zoro’s grasp.
“But they should have the choice to fight their own battles,” this might be another avenue where they disagreed, values clashing with one another. “Besides. What would she think if two more men came in and easily took out her harassers? Not everyone has as good intentions as you, cook. How would she know you didn’t mean her harm?”
That gave Sanji pause. He took the opportunity to light up a new cigarette, taking a few puffs before pushing himself out of Zoro’s personal space. “Yeah. How could she know, if she saw your brutish face? Poor thing would be scared half to death.”
˚₊ ⋆ ☠︎︎ ⋆ ₊˚
The island cats were not particularly helpful to the girl for keeping her balance– they kept slinking in between her legs, marking her as their territory with their fuzzy faces. Neither did they leave her alone as she tried to find a secluded place to bury her den den mushi in.
If poor Koshi had survived the jump, he definitely wouldn’t have survived falling from that height, and in the middle of a scuffle, too. Zee was going to be so upset when he found out… if she made it back to tell him in the first place.
With a sigh, she walked off the village path, finding shade from the early afternoon sun under the thick canopy of trees. The cool shade deterred some of her feline followers, but not all, and the remaining cats continued to accost the girl as she searched for a proper patch of dirt to bury Koshi under.
It wasn’t like the snail was all that youthful– it had been a hand-me-down, like most of the girl’s possessions, but it had been hers, named by someone she loved and maintained painstakingly all by herself.
She couldn’t exactly ask for help to feed and groom a secret snail, now could she?
A particularly persistent kitten barreled into her leg, claws catching on the fabric of her boot. “Oh?”
She squatted down to give the kitten more attention, but the plant in front of her caught her eye. A foxtail fern– weren’t they venomous? Or, was it poisonous… either way, she didn’t want the little calico kitten to touch or eat it.
“Sorry, little one,” she picked up the kitten by the scruff with one hand, setting it down on her shoulder. With her other, she reached into her backpack, grabbing the handle of a weapon and unsheathing a blade. The calico meowed at the movement, little claws hanging on to the girl’s hoodie for dear life.
The other cats just watched, curious, as the girl used the blunt edge of her katana to push the dangerous plant’s plumes away. She began to dig a hole in the cleared mulch, satisfied once it was a few inches or so deep.
Just big enough for Koshi.
“Thank you for the time you’ve given me,” the girl whispered, patting dirt over the new grave. She reached into her pocket, took out a coin not yet minted in this world, and pressed its edge into the earth, so it stuck out like a tombstone. “May you rest now.”
★。／｜＼。★
The fox was disinterested with most island-goers.
These new ones, though. They had enraptured it.
It followed them, from a distance, skipping from one newcomer to the next. The girl, the gamblers, the shoppers, the book-borrowers. But always back to the girl. The fox had half a mind to come back to the treat the girl had buried in the ground, but for now, it had bigger worries.
The newest newcomers. They were all hardened, older humans, clad in white and navy blue, and had no respect for the island. The fox had seen its favorite kitten nearly stepped on too many times to like the men.
Their behavior had earned a small scuffle from the fox. It may have been roughed up, but two of those disgraceful men had earned scratches and bite marks for the trouble.
The fox followed the men, even now, observing their odd behavior. Two disheveled islanders were talking to the white and blue men, pointing in the direction of the marketplace. The fox had thought, for a moment, that perhaps the islanders had gotten into an altercation with the men, but upon closer inspection, it realized.
They were asking the newcomers for help.
The fox growled.
It watched the men clutch their guns and run towards the market stalls, shouting at each other, scaring cats and humans alike.
The fox paced on the edge of the tree line, before disappearing into the foliage. It would simply have to observe the fall out of this latest development.
∘₊✧───✧₊∘
“Alright, mosshead, check-in time,” Sanji grabbed ahold of the man’s sleeve, an excuse lingering on his tongue, just in case the other put up a fuss. “We’ll have to finish shopping after lunch.”
“We’re not done yet?” Zoro grumbled, juggling the bags in his arms.
Sanji put out his cigarette, pocketing the remains. “Didn’t you want to pick up more sake, marimo?”
Zoro’s lips twitched. “Didn’t know you cared so much, dart-brows.”
Sanji huffed out a laugh, but let a comfortable silence guide them through the island’s downtown district. Even in the midst of the least natural part of Kismet, cats of all kinds mingled alongside the human islanders and their artificial constructs. The tiger cub earlier had given Sanji a fright, but now he could see much more dangerous predators and felines lazily sun-bathing, playing, and (of course), being fed by the populace. Some even seemed to use the houses and shops scattered about as make-shift scratching posts, along with unlucky islanders’ legs.
As they passed by a particularly sleepy-looking lion mid-yawn, someone collided into Sanji’s back so fast his Observation Haki couldn’t catch it. He stumbled forward, letting go of Zoro’s sleeve, and the poor passerby fell to the ground with an audible oof.
Sanji whipped around, the swordsman already by his side. He saw a familiar hood and backpack, and in the next second he had sat the girl up, a hand on her back to keep her upright. “Hey, are you alright?”
The girl struggled to get up, just for a second, before Sanji’s words seemed to have any effect on her. She tugged her hood further down, her other hand trying to push herself up and off the ground. “You need to go!”
Sanji looked at Zoro. Maybe the marimo’s face had scared her after all…
“He just wants to help,” Zoro balanced one of the grocery bags on his hip. Agitation flowed through his stance like water. It wasn’t like he couldn’t wait– Zoro had stopped Sanji from helping the girl earlier. Now, he had no choice but to let Sanji fret over her.
“That’s the problem!” the girl scrambled to her feet, taking her backpack off and rummaging inside it. The movement stunned them– she had been so disoriented, just mere seconds ago!
“We’re not going to hurt you,” Sanji said softly, giving the girl some space. She was clearly overwhelmed, albeit a bit monotone. “We just–”
“THERE SHE IS!” two marines rushed into the downtown plaza, guns drawn. They were quickly followed by ten more, all of them heading straight for the trio on the opposite side of the area.
“What the hell?” Sanji balked. “The navy?!”
“You may not hurt me, but they’ll hurt all of us if you don’t get lost!” The girl had found what she was looking for, unsheathing a katana and holding it in front of her.
“As if a dozen marines could hurt us,” Zoro huffed, but appreciated the girl’s form with his good eye. From what Sanji could tell, she had the footwork down at least, and the strength to wield such a weapon.
“Let us take care of it,” Sanji stood up, lighting up another cigarette. “Just sit back.”
“And watch the food,” Zoro had shrugged their supplies off, handing the girl his last bag. “This won’t take long at all.”
The marines were halfway across the plaza before they comprehended just who they had bumped into. By the time Zoro and Sanji lept into action, most of the them realized–
Their day had gone to complete and utter shit.
Zoro took on half the group, lazily cutting them with a single sword, while Sanji kicked his victims up into the air, only to sky walk above them and roundhouse them back down to earth. The fight barely lasted five minutes, with the marines eight men down and the Strawhats not even sweating.
Sanji stopped for a moment, content to watch Zoro knock around three more marines, when he heard a gun cock, ready to fire.
Before it could shoot anyone, the clang of metal alerted the fighting men to an unexpected party joining in, her hood pulled down, leaf-green hair and blank face on full display, her sword dripping with blood.
The last marine standing was holding his arms, blood seeping out between his fingers. Red blotches had popped up where the girl’s blade had made contact, the worst of which looked inflamed around the slash wound to the marine’s arm. He shouted a hasty retreat, not even bothering to wait for his still conscious men to lug the fallen back to their ship.
“What the hell did you do to that guy?” Zoro flicked the blood from Sandai before sheathing it again, his eyes never leaving the girl’s form. “His arm looked all fucked up.”
“Natural poison,” she murmured, using her sleeve to wipe off her own blade. Her shaggy hair fell into her face, but she made no move to push it away.
“Huh?!” Sanji balked. “You have poisoned swords?”
“Not usually,” She kneeled beside her backpack, slowly lowering the katana inside. It sank back into a sheath with a quiet shink. “Just forgot to clean it, is all.”
Zoro frowned at her. Sanji frowned at him. Couldn’t he be at least neutral to the girl? She had taken out a marine for them, with a sword. Marimo loved swords! Honestly, nothing pleased that sentient ball of seaweed.
Zoro took a step closer as the girl stood back up, sliding her backpack on. “Where’d they come from?”
“Dunno,” the girl shrugged. She searched the horizon, as if debating where next to go. Sanji ambled between the two green-haired swordsmen, eyes flicking back and forth.
There was a feeling in his gut that he didn’t like brewing. The same feeling when he sees people go hungry, or food laid to waste– something slimy and heavy and wrong.
“There’s no navy posts in the area,” Sanji blew a puff of smoke out, taking one last drag. When they went out after lunch, he’d have to pick up a few dozen more boxes of cigarettes. He was nearly out of the pack he had just bought. “Quite a coincidence that they managed to find us here.”
The girl nodded, eyes landing on something in the distance. She was about to leave.
“There’s no islands before this one for ages,” Zoro piped up, closing in on the girl’s side. One hand on Wado. “And no marine bases on those, either.”
“You must be real unlucky pirates then.”
Sanji paused. He slipped the remains of his cigarette in his pocket. “Oh? You recognize us?”
Zoro scowled when the girl nodded. “Then why bother slashing that marine? You must know how big our bounties are. Sounds suspicious to me.”
“I don’t really care about the World Government's money,” She shrugged.
“Oh? You’d rather steal it from street vendors, then?”
“That’s not–!” the girl spun backward to face the men, one hand reaching back for her bag. Zoro had it in his grip in an instant, looming over her with a particularly nasty frown–
That turned frighteningly blank, very quickly.
“Let me go,” She had her head bowed, shaggy green hair in her face once again. Sanji watched in confusion as Zoro loosened his grip, pulling the girl’s arm down and bringing his other hand closer to her face, as if to brush the hair out of it.
“Mosshead!” Sanji had enough of this– he lifted one leg, poised dangerously to kick Zoro in the spine if he didn’t shape up, and soon. Zoro’s actions weren’t helping the deep sense of dread Sanji was drowning in. “I don’t know what you think you’re doing, but you better stop scaring this girl or so help me–”
“Not scaring anybody,” Zoro mumbled. He wasn’t rising to match Sanji’s anger– he must have been feeling the same sickly feeling Sanji was suffering from.
“You can still let me go,” the girl offered, but any fight had left her body. “You can pretend you never saw me, either of you. This isn’t your problem.”
“I think this is the definition of our problem,” Zoro remarked, glancing over his shoulder at Sanji, as if inviting him to get closer, to take a look.
Sanji peered over Zoro’s shoulder, itching for another cancer stick of his as the feeling in his stomach left him nauseous at the thought of preparing a bountiful lunch so soon.
“Please…” The girl rasped, peering up at Sanji. This close, he couldn’t deny the similarities– her brows curled exactly like his own, and she carried herself in such a similar way– but for every trait they shared, he could find one that varied. The shape of her nose, the curve of her face, hell, the color of her hair! Even then… features that hadn’t been Sanji’s seemed to be… Zoro’s.
“It’s not too late. I can leave you alone.”
It was as if someone had put Sanji and his marimo in a blender and this girl stepped out of the Blackleg-Roronoa smoothie.
“Mini moss…” he mumbled, a realization crawling its way to settle on his tongue and tumble out of his slack jaw. “You… but, why…? how did–”
“WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!” Nami stomped down the plaza, the rest of the Strawhats in tow. Sanji jumped, thoroughly surprised, as Zoro let go of the girl and put some distance between them. They had never made it back to the ship for the check-in, so the crew must have gone out searching for them… “How did you two idiots get the attention of marines on such a secluded island, huh?!”
“Witch–” Zoro started, before Nami steam rolled over whatever excuse he was going to come up with.
“Nuh uh, I don’t wanna hear it from you!”
“Nami-san–”
Nami lifted her climatact menacingly, effectively silencing the cook. “You either, Sanji! I gave you two one job–”
“Excuse me–”
“And what do you two do?” Nami pulled at her hair in frustration. “You mess it up! You two have done food runs a million times before, what the hell changed?!”
“About that, they–”
Nami bonked both men over the head, trying to get her point drilled into their brains. “If you think we didn’t notice your weird attitudes this morning, guess what! Not all of us are oblivious morons! Is that why you two started a fight with the navy instead of each other?”
“Auntie–!”
“I SAID– huh?” Nami spun around, spotting the strange girl. For once, the entire Strawhat crew fell silent (if only for the moment). “I’m… I’m sorry, but were these guys bothering you?”
“We’re here to take them off your hands,” Robin added.
“There’s no need for that, they helped me,” The girl stepped closer, the early afternoon sun hitting her face, causing a few more observant Strawhats to gasp as their situation dawned on them.
“Ah, young love,” Brook sighed. “No wonder you two were so grumpy this morning.”
Jinbei nodded, chuckling. “Grumpier than usual, you mean.”
“Huh?” Luffy pursed his lips, scanning the girl. “Oh, I get it!”
Chopper and Usopp were wearing matching faces of disbelief. Sanji got the feeling he would be getting a lecture on protection later with his mosshead. He could only hope Chopper wouldn’t go Monster Point on them– this new revelation was already hurting Sanji’s head.
“Well then, it seems we’ve got a new crewmate,” Robin smiled at the girl, leaning down to speak with her. “Do you have a name, little swordsman?”
“I’m Sora,” she said softly, giving the Strawhats a small smile. Sanji felt like he’d be ill at any second. “And I’d say it’s nice to meet you, but I’ve known you all for most of my life.”
-ˋˏ✄┈┈┈┈
Father was displeased.
He had sent Reiju and Yonji to inspect a reported anomaly detected at the border. An Anomaly that should not have happened.
Ever since the marital (and murderous) incidents at Whole Cake Island, Judge Vinsmoke had been rotating between moods of disdain, fury, bloodlust and displeasure. Fury and bloodlust were easy to fix– Germa was always on the warpath, and had crops of soldiers at their disposal (even moreso, now that all of their kingdom’s territories had reconnected again. Judge would never allow for another situation where their forces were split up ever again). Father could wipe out battalion after battalion of spare Germa soldiers without a sweat, but eventually his cravings for gore and violence would be fulfilled. One armada at a time.
It was the disdain and displeasure that Reiju and her brothers couldn’t seem to get rid of.
Father looked at them differently, now that he had seen Sanji again after so long. Or, perhaps, Reiju simply noticed something that Judge Vinsmoke had been doing all along. Just because she could feel and not act did not mean she was totally observant– Sanji had taught her that. First, when they were just eight and eleven, then again, when he returned oh so changed. Not at all reminiscent of the scrawny, weak child he had been.
Sanji had grown into a respectable gentleman. Their mother would be so proud.
Their father… not so much.
Where Reiju saw strength, father only saw weakness. Where she silently thanked Sanji for his acts of courage, Judge Vinsmoke only saw a failure that had yet to be stamped out.
Reiju thinks, to herself (never to her loudmouth brothers, or other listening ears), that Sanji scared father. Choosing to save them was a conscious decision. Sanji could have left them to Big Mom’s pirates and allies, and Reiju wouldn’t have blamed him for a second. But that was a Vinsmoke move, Judge’s philosophy on war, not a Blackleg’s worldview. Not a level Sanji would ever stoop to, no matter who he would be aiding.
The one thing that never changed about Sanji– was that he was kind.
And kindness was something Judge Vinsmoke had never comprehended.
Thus, in an effort to appease their frustrated father, Reiju and Yonji raced to the outermost barrier of Germa. Currently, the kingdom was flanked on all sides by the most secure platforms and military posts they had. Once Father was done fortifying the rest, they would start on a rotation, to keep enemy targets guessing (and, likely, to keep intruders, like the one Judge insisted they find and apprehend, out ). “What are we gonna tell the old man when it turns out he was just paranoid?”
Reiju pulled ahead, not bothering to give an answer. The edge of Germa was within eyesight now, and she wanted this small mission done already. Reiju knew this pairing was a punishment of father’s as well– out of all of her brothers, Yonji was the most rotten.
“I’m serious!” Yonji complained, lazily keeping pace with his sister. “He’s pissed enough as is, and we know we’re not gonna find anything. What do you think is gonna happen then, huh?!”
“Accelerated training regimen?” Niji’s voice crackled to life in their headsets, startling Yonji a few feet off-course. Reiju politely did not comment.
“Sure, if we’re lucky, ” He moped. Reiju just sighed and pulled further ahead. She didn’t have time for her trouble-making brothers, especially not when Yonji was right (for once). If they came back empty-handed, surely they would be paired together on the next mission. And the one after that. And after that. Until they earned their places back in Judge’s good graces.
But when would that come, huh? If Reiju hadn’t earned it in her twenty-four years of life as an obedient servant of Germa, would she ever?
Did she even care to, at this point?
It wasn’t like she could do something about it, even if she wanted to. Her obedience was as integral to her personality as kindness was to her little brother. And he had shown her, what running away from one’s true nature did to them.
Never anything very good.
Reiju was so consumed by her despair, it took her entirely too long to spot the trespasser.
“There’s a girl,” Reiju whispered, cutting off the conversation she had long since tuned out.
“A girl?” Niji murmured, surprised. “Like, a kid?”
Well, she certainly dressed like one. The child was in some expensive athletics uniform, an odd highlighter-yellow, with long mint-blonde hair loose around her shoulders. Her shorter stature certainly made her seem young. “Affirmative. She doesn’t look dangerous.”
Niji hummed. “Proceed with caution, Pink.”
The girl yawned and stretched, shivering as the dank Germa air nipped at her. She spotted Reiju, and likely Yonji as well, however far behind he was, and instead of trembling in fear at the princess of the nation (as most were unfortunately prone to do in Reiju’s presence) or apologizing for trespassing, she seemed to… brighten up?
“Hey, what’s going on?” She called out, waving Reiju closer. The older woman cautiously landed in front of the girl, face carefully schooled into a neutral, almost bored expression.
She hoped the girl wouldn’t cry. Reiju would be useless, and Yonji would make it worse.
“Did they pull a stupid prank on me again?” the girl asked, hands on her hips with her cheeks puffed out. Reiju had no idea what this child was talking about. “I woke up on the forest platform this time. That got old, like, the fourth time I woke up in a bush.”
Yonji landed a few meters away, leisurely strolling up to the pair. “Huh? So there really was someone?”
Reiju ignored him, leaning down to address the girl, but when she turned to address her, the girl was gone. She twirled back around just in time to see the child jump up and wrap her arms around Yonji’s neck in a silly attempt at a hug.
“Wh– you brat, get off me!” Yonji was unsure how to proceed. Reiju hoped he did not end up punching the poor girl clinging to him– it wouldn’t end well for her.
Strangely, she seemed even brighter now that she had seen him.
“No!” the girl held on tighter, tucking her head under his chin. “You dragged me out, so you get to deal with the dirt!”
Yonji gave Reiju a ‘hey what the actual fuck’ look before forcibly pulling the girl off of him. He held her up by her arms, about to put her down, when he froze.
“… hey, you’re acting weird,” the girl wiggled in the man’s hold, but made no attempt to escape. She seemed content with the contact. Familiar, even.
“Reiju,” the woman froze. She had never heard her brother sound so frazzled and out of his element. “Look at her.”
Reiju walked closer, looking over Yonji’s shoulder to study the girl better. It didn’t take long at all to realize what had made him freeze up so badly–
“This is just another prank, right?” the girl blew at her bangs, giving the siblings a brief glimpse at her matching, swirled brows. “I’m not gonna fall for another one so quickly.”