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Dearest Vivi,
You would not believe how beautiful the fireflies look at night in the far distant islands of the New World. We are currently docked at a strangle little island that didn't show up on any routes. Naturally, Luffy chose this island in contrast to the one I wanted us to stop on. The rest of the Strawhats are partying by the beach, but I slipped away mid-drinks to draft you this letter. They'll notice I'm gone soon, but I didn't want to get wasted before we wrote to each other.
Being this close to the sea makes me feel even closer to you. The sound of the waves gently crashing against the tide, the old woody smell of the ancient capsized ships by the docks, the sounds of young children playing in the distance. All of which I associate with you. I can feel a little part of you in everything I see and touch these days.
The fireflies were so large and bright, much larger than the fireflies we grew up chasing and trapping in jars for show-and-tell. They were big enough to chase Chopper around the island. Poor kid was terrified, but Robin couldn't stop laughing. Same for Luffy and Zoro. Do you have similarly nightmare-sized fireflies in Alabasta? I wasn't there long enough to notice them. Maybe next time we meet, we can catch one together. I know you've been working on your combat skills. Same goes for me. We should spar. (I can't believe I just wrote that.)
Yours, Nami
.....
Vivi stared at the creased letter in her hands. It was torn in the corners, and in some places the ink was smudged due to water damage, but generally, she could make out the words. The letter was dated to approximately five months earlier. It was the last piece of communication she received from Nami, who has yet to respond to her latest correspondence. Vivi has sent countless letters since then. Vivi understood that Nami was a hot-shot pirate now, and that the Strawhats just reunited and surely had a lot to catch up on, but in her defense, she was a Princess with a country to run. The least Nami could do was send someone to simply confirm her lover was okay.
Two years ago, Vivi was aboard the Going Merry for a very, very, disappointingly brief stint as an honorary Strawhat. It was the funnest time of her life, and the only time where she recalls being truly free. Freedom was something Vivi narrowly understood as a concept, but seeing it play out in real life, how truly free people acted in their day-to-day, quickly changed the course of her life. Meeting with the Strawhats was something she considered very near and dear to her whole being. It was as if something in her shifted after that, and she was never able to see the world the way she did in the past. Prior to their meeting, Vivi never realized how her past naivety and ignorance was a privilege. Taking accountability for her past viewpoints was sobering.
Specifically, she recalls the most of her change coming from the ship's sassy navigator, Nami. From the intel she was given, Vivi assumed that Nami was one of the weaker members of the Strawhats, surely not the one to pay attention to. There was not a lot of information out there about her - aside from her stunning bounty photograph, and her reputation as a catty thief. Not too big a threat. World governments didn't think very much of her either.
Nami carried herself with a brave grace that Vivi had never seen. She may not have been very strong physically, but still, she could fight. She had a very quick wit, and a nearly eidetic memory. Her cartography skills were among the finest Vivi had ever seen period - even up against the cream of the crop of the world's best navigators, map makers, and trailblazers. She quickly understood why the entire crew protected her with such fierceness.
Vivi understood how dangerous the seas could get out of nowhere, seemingly unprovoked. Luck was a large part of survival when you were sailing on the grand line. She sailed the seas plenty of times before. All of those times were with her father, who was an amazing seaman. He would often be the one navigating and controlling the wheel, directing everyone to their individual tasks. A wise king and a decent crew member, she wondered where he might have learned his skills from. He never shared that detail with her, but she wasn't very curious, either.
When she was sailing with her father, and his retainers, the weather was always beautiful, the skies the brightest blue. It only made sense to deliberately sail during the best possible conditions. Being with the Strawhats for just a brief period of time, Vivi quickly learned that that was a privilege in and of itself. They never ran out of resources either, always having food on deck, clothing, and ample activities to keep her entertained. With the Strawhats, while they were often jovial and cheery during the daylight, the night time brought about a stark contrast to the liveliness of the day prior. When nightfall hit, and the members were beginning to fall into their respectively deep slumbers, it was as if everyone disappeared into their own worlds, as if the crew had an unspoken verbal agreement for a silent curfew. Otherwise known as: Vivi was bored sometimes.
It was during one of these nights where she began to notice Nami. Vivi, standing near the starboard end of the ship, had a light shawl wrapped tightly around her neck, her mind empty and void of any specific thoughts. She merely wanted to stand in the salty mist, and take in the beauty of a (seemingly) empty ship. The sound of gentle but swift footsteps startled her, and she turned around suddenly, her eyes enlarged.
"Nami? Why are you still awake?" Said Vivi, who had turned her head around to face the sea again. Nami took a deep breath. "I couldn't really sleep. I was gonna come out here and tend to my trees a little, and that's when I saw you standing there like a creep. Why are you awake?"
Vivi shrugged, ignoring the odd comment. "Couldn't sleep either. Have a lot on my mind tonight." Truthfully, she didn't, but she didn't know what else to say.
Nami nudged her shoulder. "Wanna talk about it? I'm a pretty good listener."
Vivi thought about it for a few seconds. "Not really... I just, kind of wanted to stand here. I noticed that it's really pretty in the middle of the ocean. I wonder how many people can say they've seen the wide open sea on a night like..." Vivi gestured vaguely around her, pointing at the sky and the water down below, "..this."
Nami chuckled. When she laughs, her eyes wrinkle, a trait that Vivi had always thought was endearing. She must laugh a lot.
"You're saying an awful lot for someone who didn't really wanna talk." A small smile formed on Vivi's face. "I suppose." She turned to face Nami directly, supporting her elbow on the guardrails of the ship. "You have quite a welcome presence about you."
Vivi walked over to where Nami was standing, and stood directly next to her. "So why do you all sleep so early? It's barely past midnight. For a ragtag group of misfits that like to party, you all go to bed so terribly early."
"Hmm. Everyone's still awake though? Just in their rooms. Robin's in the library, nose deep in a book. Sanji's in the kitchen, perfecting a late night snack for us. Usopp and Chopper are playing chess in their room. I think the only people who are actually asleep are Luffy and Zoro. Knowing them, they probably tired themselves out with a spar."
Vivi was genuinely stunned. "Wow." She said, letting out a breathy sigh. "So the Strawhats do occasionally know peace after all."
This time, Nami let out a guttural belly laugh. Her laugh was so deep and real, as if she understood the joke on a deeper level than Vivi herself did. "Peace? Rarely. We get attacked at night by the Marines sometimes. We're always ready for a fight - even if its 3am. We'll take all the quiet time we can get."
Vivi hummed. "I get that. Starting with when our kingdom was taken over by Crocodile, there was not a peaceful day in the kingdom. Everyday there was suffering in some capacity. I truly appreciated the moments where I felt emotionally disconnected from the rest of the country, when it was just me and the tide sometimes."
Nami scoffed. "What a piece of shit."
"Right?"
The two of them continued to converse over the next few hours about nothing in particular, going back and forth with each other exchanging witty quips and inserting their personal anecdotes. Nami had such a brilliant mind to her. Through just one night of vulnerability, Vivi found herself quickly attached to the ship's treasured navigator.
Weeks later, and they were both head over heels for the other. The Strawhats didn't know yet, and it was just their little secret. They were going to tell them eventually, but for now, they just wanted to enjoy their time together.
Nami was brushing Vivi's hair during one of their nightly escapades. The thin bristles glided through her thick blue hair, leaving behind a soft sheen and a slight wave. Nami liked brushing her girlfriend's hair. It was much longer and thicker than hers, a single detail in the sea of details which Nami adored. Vivi truly was a princess - be it in her little behaviors, the eloquence behind every word she says, or how she always has a rich story to tell.
In the beginning, she thought Vivi was stuck up and rude, especially with how she initially introduced herself to the Strawhats. Over time, she has shaped up to be a strong ally, and an honorary member of the Strawhats. Nami felt oddly close to Vivi, in a way that she was unable to express very clearly. They were touchier than most friends were, and Nami found herself playfully flirting with her new friend more and more, until it had become clear that neither of them were truly playing. Perhaps Nami meant all of it.
She was surprised when Vivi made the first move, asking her for her hand, to join her in a dance under the moonlit sky. Nami wordlessly agreed, offering her hand. Vivi grinned and pulled her forward, closer to her, and rested her head on her shoulder. They matched each others steps and danced around the ship, Vivi was the better dancer, but Nami quickly caught on, not even once tripping over Vivi's feet. Vivi twirled Nami and dipped her, and the way her eyes twinkled, as if she was staring at the entire universe, as if Vivi herself was the entire universe, sincerely touched her heart. At that moment, Vivi knew what she felt was love. Not just any love, but sincere, heavy, and genuine love.
They silently danced for the rest of the night, and when the sun came up, they retreated to their chambers. When they met up again in the morning, the first thing Nami did was embrace Vivi in the tightest hug she had ever felt in her whole life.
"...I don't entirely know what last night was." She whispered into Vivi's ear, making her whole body shiver.
"That's okay." Vivi responded, embracing her lover a little tighter. "We can figure it out, no?"
Nami laughed again. God, how Vivi wished she could hear it over and over, and over. "You're so confident."
"I'm a born risk taker. It's in my blood. Remember, the whole lied-about-my-identity thing?
Nami rolled her eyes. "You're a little crazy. I like it." She pried her lover off of her and patted her on the back. "Come, let's go meet the others for breakfast. Whatever Sanji was working on last night, I can smell it from here."
Vivi looked back on these memories with such fondness. Soon after that, they were forced to separate, and she had to stay back at home to fix what was left of Alabasta, with her father by her side. Her home country was a large priority for her, and she never realized how much of an impact being a Princess would have on her love life. They promised to communicate with each other through letters, and it worked perfectly fine for two years. She didn't think she'd have to pick between love and her responsibilities so soon.
When the Strawhats reached Sabaody, they were separated by Bartholomew Kuma. When Vivi first read about this event on the newscoo, she didn't think too much of it. Perhaps it was planned, as Kuma was a well-known member of the Revolutionaries. When news of the Strawhats activites had begun to simmer, and the news began to die down, that's when she began to feel fear. She painstakingly sent all of the members letters, knowing they would most likely not be intercepted - how can you send a letter, when you do not know of its destination? When she noticed Luffy's tattoo - 3D2Y, she immediately understood. She felt relief knowing they were all physically fine, even the members she was not very close with.
She didn't send any more letters to the Strawhats. Though the lack of communication pained her greatly, they were pirates, after all. One could never tie down a pirate. She wouldn't have admired them otherwise.
When she got her first letter from Nami, not too soon after they all separated, Vivi cried tears of joy. Her letter was so soft, so intimate, Vivi replied as fast as she could. She replied so fast, that she spilled a bottle of ink all over the paper three different times, all because she truly could not write back fast enough. Little blots of ink covered the pages. Vivi drew little faces out of them, something she thought might make Nami laugh throughout her trainings.
Over the course of those two years, she wondered constantly how Nami was doing. Everything was fine between them, up until the day she received her seemingly final letter from her lover. Five months later, she finds herself staring at the letter, wishing she could travel into the page, and absorb the events leading up to the moment Nami departed from her life.