Work Text:
The young man ran through the sands, fleeing his pursuers. Blood flowed from the wound across his face, filling his mouth with its coppery taste and making him cough to clear his throat to be able to breathe. It left him exhausted as he dropped to his knees at the water's edge of an oasis. Was he safe? He had no such illusion. There was no safe place in the desert.
He hesitated at the sight of dark shapes in the water, golden eyes gazing at him just above the surface. But he could hear the men chasing after him get closer, reaching the outer foliage of the oasis. He feared man more than beast, so he waded into the water, expecting teeth to snap around his limbs at any moment. They paid him no heed.
The young man waded up to his chest in the water, looking around astonished, but then heard the men following him enter the water. He looked back, fear gripping his heart but he wanted to face his attackers nonetheless. He wouldn't die with a knife in the back, to be scraps for scavengers.
Suddenly the water exploded in a flurry of activity. The men screamed as the large beasts caught flailing limbs in their maws and pulled them under. The young man had to swim away to dodge massive bodies rolling in the water.
He was so impressed by the creatures deigning to save him that in his new life, he named himself after them. Sir Crocodile.
Many years, and a massive dose of cynicism at life later, Crocodile figured that his scrawny ass back then just hadn't been worth wasting the effort to try to eat. Not that he judged their pragmatism. That was just life. The strong decide who lives and who dies. Even in knowing that, it never diminished his fondness for the creatures.
Now that Crocodile was the strong one, he often wandered up to that water's edge, but now without any fear. The Bananawani were smart creatures. The ones that lived in the lake around his casino all knew him well, knew his to be the hand that feeds them. But even the wild ones did not attack him, just like those creatures had done many years ago.
It was just that the circumstances had changed. Once, he had been beneath their notice. Now, they recognised him as the more dangerous predator among them and they watched each other, gauging one another for a sign of weakness. When none was found, they all left without bloodshed.
Crocodile liked animals. They were so much more honest than humans, and they understood their place in the natural order.