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Nami and Vivi were enjoying a quiet moment in Going Merry's kitchen, sitting across from each other at the dinner table, while being pampered with lavish appetizers and exquisite beverages by Sanji. They had left Drum Kingdom only hours ago, and the blue-haired girl could finally feel at ease again, because she had feared the worst when Nami had fallen ill.
''Something on your mind, Vivi?'' Nami asked with an endearing smile, and then took a sip from the strawberry smoothie Sanji had whipped up for her and the princess.
''I'm just so glad you're healthy again,'' Vivi answered solemnly, ''you really gave us all a scare... Especially me.''
''Oh, enough of that. As you can see, I'm totally fine now. I can't believe you took a bullet for demanding passage into Drum so I could be seen by a doctor though,'' Nami said, then tilted her head, and planted it in her hand. ''How are you?''
''The bullet only grazed me... But I'm thankful,'' Vivi revealed, as her demeanor grew distant. ''You are all about to help me save my kingdom. It's a debt I would never be able to repay, if we succeed.''
''If?'' Nami chided, ''you mean when, I assume?''
''Yeah, we'll definitely take out Baroque Works!'' Sanji yelled lovingly from the kitchen, which made Nami glare at him.
''Butt out, Sanji,'' Nami huffed, before she reached for Vivi's hands and grabbed them tight. ''It's completely natural to be anxious of what's to come.''
''What if something bad happens to you or any of the others? I can't lose any of you... but if I lost you Nami, I would never be the same.''
Vivi bit her lip to hold back her emotions. She noticed Nami get up – instead, she took a seat next to her.
''Babe,'' Nami whispered and gently pushed the blue-haired princess into her arms, then started stroking her hair calmly. ''I learnt from my late mom to live in the now, and that's what I want for us. We have some time to kill, so any ideas for something fun we could do? It could be anything.''
''Well-'' Vivi started saying, but was interrupted when the newest member of the crew, the reindeer doctor Chopper, opened the door carefully and walked over to Sanji. Soon after, Vivi's companion animal, the super-spot billed duck Carue, appeared as well and followed Chopper.
Quacks were heard, and Chopper nodded several times at the large duck, then looked up at Sanji, ''he says he would like his water bottle refilled. Oh, and do you have any candy?''
The little reindeer marveled in sheer bliss when Sanji promptly handed him some chocolate. Then the cook filled Carue's barrel bottle and neatly placed it around his neck again, and made sure to plop back in the straw the duck used to drink.
''All good now?'' Sanji said kindly as he crouched down to Chopper, and patted Carue's plumage as he did.
Vivi's heart warmed by witnessing the scene, and she exhaled happily, ''Sanji is great with them. I will miss this...''
Nami stopped stroking Vivi's hair then, and gulped, ''wait, are you intending to leave?''
''I want to stay, trust me!''
The blue-haired girl pulled away from Nami and sighed, ''I don't want to let you down. I want to continue having moments like this, with you and all the others... But I also have an obligation to my kingdom. You wouldn't understand.''
''Oh, so now I'm just some ditz who can't get the severity of the situation?''
Nami stood up with crossed arms, and her brows closed in on each other, ''I know this relationship is new and all, but this is a pretty big thing you've been hiding from me.''
Chopper, Carue and Sanji didn't know how to react. Out of respect for their privacy, Sanji led the two out of the kitchen and closed the door behind him, leaving the couple alone in the room.
Vivi kept quiet for a bit, before she got up and moved towards the door.
''So that's it then? We're not even gonna talk about this?''
The orange-haired girl's fists were clenched, and her voice was on the breaking point, ''Vivi... I...''
The princess had her back against her girlfriend, and she struggled, because she had no idea what to do in the situation she was in. She had known how to infiltrate a dangerous organization like Baroque Works – but nothing had prepared her for the intricacies of her first relationship. It was harder than she expected.
''If you want to be mad at me, I completely understand. Yet, if you would like to enjoy our time before we arrive in Alabasta, I'll be outside,'' Vivi chose to say, before she walked out.
...
Some time had passed, when Nami approached Vivi, who was sitting on the deck's floor, leaning up against Carue. The princess noticed her immediately and smiled earnestly at her.
Luffy and Usopp were running around acting like idiots, and Chopper was following them desperately, because he wanted to be a part of whatever they were doing. Zoro was sleeping soundly in the corner, and Nami knew Sanji was in the kitchen again, preparing dinner.
Nami sat on the Merry's railing close to her girlfriend, with crossed legs and tried her best to keep her composure. She cared about Vivi so much, and she even had thought of the unthinkable; leaving the crew to stay with her in Alabasta when the country had been liberated. Though, she didn't exactly want to leave the crew, despite how annoying they all were at times. Which was all the more reason why she needed Vivi with her. She had become part of the inner workings of the crew already. Nami decided to speak of something else.
''Love, what was your childhood like?''
Vivi looked up, and felt her heart soar because it seemed Nami wasn't mad.
''It was... Great, until my mom died. That really took a toll on me and my father. Our people too.''
''That's what's so amazing about you. Even when speaking of your own pain, you take the whole kingdom's feelings into consideration as well...''
Nami jumped down to Vivi, now looking at her, with nothing but love and support, ''I'm sorry. I've just never cared about someone the way I do about you. And I suppose I can relate. I needed to do away with Arlong back in Cocoyashi. Difference is, I thought I had to do it all alone for a really long time. You choose to depend on me and our friends, and that is braver than you realize.''
Vivi was on the verge of tears, but held them back; she didn't want to ruin the moment. She placed her fingers on the back of Nami's hand.
''I might have learned a thing or two from a certain tangerine-loving beauty,'' the princess hummed in delight.
Nami studied Vivi's face as she smiled widely. Her brows were furrowed a little, but she hoped Vivi couldn't tell that she was in despair over their situation. The prospect of being apart from the girl sitting in front of her tore her apart, bit by bit. She laid her arms around her blue-haired girlfriend, drawing her into a hug that grounded both of them. It felt like coming home, because of all the love they had for each other. The navigator then moved her head back a little, grabbed Vivi's chin, and cupped her cheeks while admiring her. Their eyes met, then their foreheads brushed, and Nami kissed her in a way that must have meant 'I'm here for you.' Neither of them ever wanted to pull away; it was like space and time blended together. And yet, it was apparent that their lips moved as if they were afraid to lose each other.
***
Crocodile had Vivi by her throat, as he dangled her by the ledge of the Alubarna palace courtyard. From below, constant and incessant sounds of gunshots, screams and terror could be heard.
''You naive, insufferable girl. As if you could save anyone. Let your dying thought be that all your senseless efforts were for absolutely nothing,'' he told her harshly. His voice was as cold as it always was. His hand turned into sand, resulting in his letting go of her throat. As Vivi started falling with tears streaming down her face, she heard his taunting laughter, which followed her descent. The sound echoed in her mind, and stung like needles being pressed into her heart.
Was this it? As her body fell through the air, she wished more than anything in the world that she had the physical power to take down someone like Crocodile.
Right then, she heard the flutter of wings. A sound that she would recognize anywhere.
Pell zoomed towards her before she came too close to the ground, and someone's familiar hands grabbed her tight and didn't let go, and then proceeded to hug her.
''Nami,'' Vivi whispered through her sobbing, ''he's going to win. He's going to...''
''No he's not. Luffy will take care of him,'' Nami reassured, as she determinedly looked ahead. She caught a glimpse of Crocodile before he was gone. For attempting to kill her girlfriend, she personally wanted to tear him a new one, but she had to let the one most capable of that do it; the captain of the Straw Hats.
Vivi hesitated, but started wiping away her tears, ''how are you so sure he can beat him?''
''Aside from the fact that our dear captain never gives up, he hates tyrants... It makes him want to push himself further,'' Nami explained, before she and the princess were put down by Pell on the rooftop of some building.
''Oh – and he's pretty strong too,'' Nami winked at her girlfriend cheekily, to cheer her up. She knew it would take more than that though, considering the situation they were currently in.
''Princess Vivi, it is not safe here,'' Pell's worried eyes looked at the blue-haired girl, as he changed from his falcon form, to his human one.
''Save it, Pell. I was capable enough to pose as being part of Baroque Works. I will not rest until my country is safe!'' Vivi almost shouted, to let her conviction shine through. Despite her words, it was unbearable that she could not do more.
''Fooound you,'' an ominous voice hummed teasingly, as a person crashed through the roof and impaled Pell's stomach with all ten of her razor-sharp fingers. She pulled his limp body off of her hands, as the Alabastian warrior heaved for air. The blood from his wounds trickled down, before he passed out from pain and shock.
''PELL!!''
Vivi grabbed her Peacock Slashers from her pocket and in a fit of righteous rage, she slashed at the enemy with them. A person she knew all about. One of the top agents of the criminal syndicate that wanted to overthrow the King, her father. ''Miss Doublefinger.''
Miss Doublefinger evaded Vivi's weapons, and then flashed the bloody fingers in front of her face as she laughed wickedly, ''this is the end of the line for you, princess dear.''
Nami threw her coat to the floor, signifying how she was ready to fight, as she stepped in front of Vivi and glared with contempt at their enemy, ''you've made a mistake.''
Vivi had moved over to Pell and tried to wake him up by rustling him obsessively, ''Pell, no, NO! You can't leave me!''
''Please, what can you do?'' Doublefinger said in amusement as her hair turned into lots of spikes. A second later, she ran forcefully towards Nami, intending to impale her as well.
Nami had grabbed the Clima-Tact and swiftly defended herself with it, but only for a second. She managed to deflect and used the momentum to jump out of the way. Since she had been standing close to the edge of the roof, Doublefinger fell off of there. Then her desperate eyes locked with Vivi's.
''Go, get help for Pell. I'll take care of this!''
''But Nami!'' Vivi pleaded and was about to reach for the orange-haired girl.
''DON'T ARGUE WITH ME, JUST GO!'' Nami yelled; her anger only reared its face because she would do anything to keep Vivi out of danger. She wasn't exactly a trained fighter like Luffy, Zoro and Sanji, but she could hold her own, and the weapon Usopp had made for her offered her a chance against the monstrous Miss Doublefinger, which she was well aware of.
Vivi ran to Nami's side and kissed her cheek, before nodding at her, ''please... Be careful.''
They exchanged a fist bump, before Vivi hurried back to Pell and started dragging him down from the rooftop.
''How sweet,'' Miss Doublefinger swiftly jumped from the ground to the roof and smirked evilly, this time wanting to attack Nami with her spiky foot, ''now die!''
''Cyclone Tempo!''
Nami formed the Clima-Tact into an X by detaching its parts from each other and assembling it differently, which made a great gust of wind blast the enemy away from her, and then Doublefinger crashed into a building below.
''Your first mistake was threatening Vivi. Your second? Underestimating me. The weather forecast tells me you're in for lightning strikes and excessively strong gales,'' Nami said as she swung around the Clima-Tact in her hand, and stared Miss Doublefinger down, who was starting to get up while coughing.
''My name is Cat Burglar Nami, and I'd die before I'd let you harm her.''
***
The battle had been won. Baroque Works and Crocodile had been defeated by Luffy and his crew, and then they had been arrested by the marines. Apparently, they were facing the fate of being imprisoned in a high-security prison known as Impel Down.
Days had passed, and a victory party had been held – and now, the departure of the Straw Hats drew closer by every passing minute.
Nami woke up next to Vivi in her royal chamber, and smiled as she carefully and gently traced her skin with her fingers. The thought of having to leave her behind was in the back of her mind, causing her great anguish.
The princess yawned, and awoke because of her girlfriend's touch. She opened her eyes which met the orange-haired girl's and gave her a good morning kiss, which lingered on their lips afterwards.
''You were so drunk yesterday at the banquet,'' Vivi hummed teasingly, ''your epithet should be Drunk Burglar Nami.''
Nami laughed a little as she got up to put on some clothes, ''it was illuminating to experience a royal banquet. I've only ever heard of those in stories.''
''The boys certainly made a mess of the royal dining hall. How much Luffy can eat seriously stuns me sometimes,'' Vivi followed Nami and opened her much too large closet, where lavish gowns and jewelry met her sight.
The navigator knew they had to leave today, but she pretended it was not so, and rested her head on the shoulder of her girlfriend for a moment. Vivi then grabbed a dress and a sapphire necklace from the closet, and handed them to the girl beside her.
''I want you to have these,'' Vivi revealed and bit her lip, since she had overheard Luffy yesterday talk of how they had to leave, so she tried to hold back her despair. She never wanted to be apart from Nami, ever – but it seemed inevitable. Her country needed her, she deemed.
''Are you sure? They're so beautiful,'' Nami said and then went to go look in the mirror that hung on one of the closet doors, where she swayed the dress in front of her, to imagine how it would look on her body. It was a long, orange dress with frills fit for a princess. Then she stared at the necklace, and the color reminded her of Vivi's hair.
Vivi kissed Nami's cheek from behind, took the necklace from her hand and placed it around her neck, ''not as beautiful as you.''
''Vivi... I,'' Nami said and turned around quickly, and dropped the dress in the same beat. She looked like she was struggling to get her words out. ''Can't I just stay here with you...?''
Vivi was unsure of what to say. Nami had a dream of mapping the world, and she knew how much the crew meant to her. Leaving all that behind would only hurt her in the long run.
''Nami... I don't want to hold you back.''
''You're NOT, I need you in my life!''
Silence followed. Vivi had chosen a white dress to wear and sighed wistfully as she put it on, ''zip me up?''
The navigator in love hesitated. She wanted their relationship to continue so badly that it was slowly tearing her apart. Nevertheless, she gently moved Vivi's hair out of the way and zipped her up.
''Are we over?'' Nami asked as tears pressed on. She placed a hand on the blue haired girl's cheek and felt the warmth emanate from it. The warmth she needed every day.
Vivi's eyes met Nami's. Wrecked with guilt, she frowned.
''I... I've enjoyed our time together. But it's time for a reality check. You belong on the Going Merry, and I... with my country.''
Nami stared at her girlfriend in disbelief. Her look was unreadable, and then she turned around quickly, ''I see.''
Before the princess could say more, Nami was gone and the slamming of the door made Vivi jolt a little, as the tears flowed down her cheeks. She tried to tell herself that she had no choice; that this was for the best – but her heart betrayed her. It knew how she really felt.
...
Later in the day, Vivi had confined herself to her room, and nothing seemed able to comfort her, not even her best friend Carue's silly antics.
Her father, Cobra, knocked on her door and entered after hearing nothing, ''Vivi, dear... The Straw Hats left. You weren't gonna say goodbye?''
With furrowed brows, the princess looked at her father, ''... there's something I would like to discuss. I know I'm the heir, but... You're the ruler right now. Can't I go with them... I'll return one day when it's my turn to reign, I swear it!''
The King sighed, ''Vivi... I don't think that's a good idea...''
''But I'm in love with her!''
Vivi's knees hit the floor and she achingly crossed her hands in front of where her heart was.
''That pirate?'' he asked and seemed to think it all over. ''I just got you back. You're my little girl.''
Vivi got up and hugged her father, ''please, if you love me, let me go with them. I can't be apart from her. I know I can't be seen by the marines. I'll be careful and wear disguises, I promise.''
Carue looked out of the window and quacked enthusiastically several times, in the direction of the path that the Straw Hats had left from.
''See, Carue wants to go too,'' she begged as her father's tired, but loving eyes met hers.
''If I may,'' another voice sounded, and Pell approached, wrapped in bandages as a result of when Miss Doublefinger had injured him, ''with respectfulness, my King, Vivi is old enough to make her own choices. We can keep in touch with her via transponder snails. She clearly needs your blessing.''
King Cobra looked from his daughter, to Pell, and finally Carue who was making puppy dog eyes next to Vivi. He relented and nodded slowly, ''I'll miss you, my dear and only daughter.''
He embraced her and let the hug linger for a little bit, then pulled her from his body by the shoulders, ''now, you should hurry. Carue is fast, so he should be able to get you there in time.''
''Thank you,'' Vivi said before she ran around the room to gather her most important items in a bag, and then hurried down the hallway with the large duck right behind her, ''you're the best father ever. Pell, thanks for your help!''
''There she goes,'' Cobra sighed and placed a hand on his forehead, ''she deserves this though, after everything. I just hope it won't be too dangerous.''
''Again, if I may, I have a suggestion. I, with royal envoys and soldiers, can follow them and make sure they don't get into too much trouble?'' Pell suggested and his King agreed.
...
Carue was panting heavily as they neared the shore.
''Come on, we're nearly there!'' Vivi exclaimed, stressed out of her mind, but she caught a glimpse of the Going Merry, a distance away.
On the ship, Nami was being very quiet, barely having said anything to anyone since her and Vivi's conversation. She sighed deeply and looked at the sapphire. Remembered the princess she loved so much, her infectious laugh and her deep courage. She would never get to tell her how much she loved her now, and that fact made her soul ache.
Chopper was using binoculars to try and spot Vivi and Carue, especially for Nami's sake, and once he did, he yelled out: ''Nami, they're here!''
Vivi had jumped down from Carue and now ran the last distance to the edge of the cliffy shore she had arrived on, as if for dear life.
''NAMI! I love you!'' she screamed with the full force of her lungs, hoping the navigator could hear her despite the distance. ''I want to be with you, and I want to be a full-fledged member of the Straw Hats!''
Nami thought it was a dream. She had already given up hope. She had to wipe away a few tears of joy from the corners of her eyes, as Zoro, Sanji, Usopp and Luffy surrounded her with smiles.
Once the Going Merry was back at the shore, Nami jumped down and bolted as fast as humanly possible to the side of the princess, and almost tackled her into a hug.
''Nefertari Vivi... You're an enigma. Don't make me hurt like this again, please...''
Vivi let her body and soul be enveloped by the pirate girl she had fallen in love with.
''I wouldn't dare. I figured my country needs me, but we need each other. I'd regret it for the rest of my life if I let you slip away. A love like this only comes around once, I've heard.''
Carue was cheering the girls on with quacks, and greeted the other Straw Hats with a wing in the air.
''It wouldn't be fair to Carue either,'' Nami said and then felt truthful love soar in her heart when her eyes locked with Vivi's, ''... I love you too, by the way. So much that it hurts.''
Nami leaned in and pressed her lips against Vivi's, and this time, the kiss was like a meeting of two. Two pirates, two girls, two souls – ones that had almost lost the other, but their destiny had evidently always been to be together. And now they would be.
As they walked back to the Going Merry hand-in-hand, they reassured each other with smiles of acknowledgement. They saw each other. Saw what was inside, behind responsibilities and the chaos of the world – and that was all they had ever wanted. To be truly seen.