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Out of principle, Koby stays a healthy distance from the shoreline.
There’s no real reason for him to get closer to the shore. All of the best fish are usually chased into deeper waters whenever a big ship comes into the bay. Koby’s never gotten close enough to see what kinds of ships they are, but it’s common knowledge enough.
Pirates.
They’re another reason why Koby prefers to stay near the drop off. The absolute last thing he needs is to get nabbed by one of their fishing nets. He’s heard the horror stories of mers being captured and sold on the islands for dubious things. Pirates thought mermaid scales brought good luck. Create a whole necklace out of them—or armor—and you’d be set.
So. Pirates? No, thank you. Koby has his own nets to worry about.
Today starts out no different than the others. He checks his traps, the late afternoon sun rays beaming through the waters above. He tips his head back and sighs; even if coming this close to the island was a bit riskier, the warmth of the water makes it worth it.
Koby is finishing collecting his haul of mollusks and crabs, a dark shadow blocks out the sun above him.
Probably a ship. Koby glances up, his heart jolting inside his ribs. It’s not a ship—it’s a human.
They’re sinking rapidly, as if they weigh as much as a large rock. They kick and scream and pump their arms, but the ocean drags them down.
They can’t swim.
Koby hesitates only for an instant—saving a life is worth the potential of discovery, even if that life is a human’s . He drops his traps and flicks his tail, darting through the water to the human’s side in an instant. He loops his arms around the human’s shoulders and tugs—the human is still squirming, thrashing so violently Koby gets hit in the face. Twice.
Even with the awkward flailing, Koby manages to break the surface. They’re on the far side of the island, where the shore is rocky and the trees are dense. Far enough away from the human settlement that Koby feels comfortable enough to climb out of the water to help. He hauls the human onto the rock onto its back.
It doesn’t move.
Koby stares for a moment, anxiety beginning to crest in his stomach. Humans…breathe…don’t they? Where are their lungs? They don’t have gills—unless they’re supposed to have gills, and this one's somehow closed up? Oh, seas! What is he supposed to do now?
The human’s chest gurgles, and seconds later they’re hacking up seawater. Koby flees to the edge of the rock and back into the water.
Heart racing, he waits just under the surface for a few beats, watching the human’s shadow. Eventually it gets up and walks back toward the trees. It must be alright, then.
Relieved and nerves settled, he flicks his tail and heads back to regather his fish. What a weird day.
Koby is ready to chalk up the first experience up to a freak drowning. But strangely, it happens again. For a human that can’t seem to swim, it’s an unfortunate coincidence they’ve ended up in the water twice now.
The third time, though? Koby knows there's something fishy is going on.
Barely a week has gone by between the first and second attempted drowning. For it to happen again is just bizarre. Maybe this human doesn’t want to be rescued? As morbid as this is, Koby considers this as an option. It would be viable if it wasn't for how hard the human seems to struggle under the water.
After depositing the human on the rocky shore, Koby hangs back this time. He hides on the other side of a rock, a decent distance away just in case he needs to escape. He watches as the human coughs (water doesn’t go in their lungs, he’s come to learn) and collapses onto its back.
The human lays still for a while, breathing harshly and loudly. Koby notices for the first time they look to be roughly the same age as him. Or the same size, at least. The human has tan skin, dark hair, and a pair of waterlogged flip flops that dangle off of one toe.
Man, feet are weird.
The longer this goes on, the more awkward he feels. Koby fidgets with his hands. Should he say something? Do humans even speak the same language? Maybe he could communicate through sand drawings or something.
The human suddenly sits up straight, brown eyes locking straight onto Koby.
“HEY!” he exclaims, voice bouncing across the rocks. His grin is so wide it crinkles the scar underneath his eye. “I’ve been looking for— hey wait! ”
Koby’s flight reflex has him arcing toward the water. The human is up in a flash, rushing forward. Koby slips into the surf—and the human follows him.
The water this close to the rocks really isn’t that deep. Koby watches as the human immediately starts thrashing and sinks, air bubbles flowing from their mouth as they scream.
“What is wrong with you?” Koby demands once the human is back on dry land. Immediately he flushes, embarrassed that he’d be so bold to a complete stranger. “Er—Are you alright?”
“I’m a really bad swimmer,” the human says, and for some reason he’s still smiling.
“I know. Why do you keep ending up in the water?”
“How else am I supposed to talk to you?” The human looks at him as though he’s thoroughly surprised by his stupidity—and then, he hits Koby on the head.
“Ouch!” It’s no more than a rap of knuckles on the crown of his head. The shock makes his tail flap in the water, the splash drawing the human’s attention.
“Whoa, so that tail is attached to you! Shanks told me about merpeople the last time he was here, but I didn’t believe him. That’s why I was in the water the first time you helped me. I tried to swim after his ship, but I forgot.”
The human seems perfectly content to listen to himself talk. His lips—which are a very normal set of lips, by the way. Nothing out of the ordinary and there’s no reason for Koby to be staring—are set in a pout.
There are a hundred questions that bubble to Koby’s lips. It seems this human likes the sound of his own voice. (Koby kind of likes it too.)
He should really be going, but…
“Forgot what?” he asks, curiosity getting the better of him.
“Oh!” The human grins widely. His teeth are so white they remind Koby of little pearls. “I ate a Devil Fruit that makes me really stretchy.”
The pieces are starting to fall into place in Koby’s head. He’s heard of devil fruits before, but he’s never met anyone who has eaten one. It certainly explains why this human could drown in such shallow water.
This human looks at him with so much intensity, Koby has to look away. It’s like staring into the sun. “Why me, though?”
“You saved me and I wanted to thank you! So thanks…” He squints and tilts his head, waiting.
“Koby.”
“Koby. That’s a funny name. I’m Monkey D. Luffy.”
His smile is infectious. Koby can’t help softly returning it. “Nice to meet you, Luffy. I never thought I’d talk this long with a human before.”
“That’s what makes us friends.” Luffy nods, as though speaking this outloud has turned it into truth. Koby’s heart does a strange little flip in his chest. He’s never had a friend before.
Luffy sits criss-crossed on the edge of the rock, eyeing Koby’s tail with interest. “Your tail looks shiney. Can I touch it? Is it slimy like a fish? Do you taste like a fish? What do you eat under the water? How fast can you swim? I bet it’s super fast.”
Luffy berates him with a few more (hundred) questions, Koby sits back against the rock and gets comfortable. Luffy has a lot of questions, but that’s okay. Koby’s never had someone to talk to before. It’s actually kind of…nice.
It seems he’ll be here for a while. Koby doesn’t mind one bit.