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It had been four days since the Strawhats had started walking in the melting desert of the Alabasta Kingdom, and they were in desperate need of a place with running water and a bed that wasn’t made of bumpy sand. They were all so tired, thirsty and hungry that even talking to each other resulted in something not worth doing.
Luckily, by the evening, they finally found a cave, so they decided to set up camp and spend the night. It wasn’t nice by any means, but the team celebrated as if they had found a five-star spa with all expenses paid. That was something Vivi had always admired about them. They all seemed so carefree and content with barely anything. She felt so guilty for dragging them with her. They’d already saved her life multiple times, and that was how she was repaying them? With a mild sunburn and the first showing symptoms of severe dehydration? She should’ve felt ashamed to be called their friend.
As the team waited for Sanji to cook the giant monster Luffy had knocked out in the morning, Vivi excused herself and went for a walk. She didn’t stray too far, though, as she was exhausted from being on her feet all day. She just needed enough space to be alone, sit down, and, if she were being honest with herself, maybe cry a little bit.
“A berry for your thoughts?” Nami said, startling Vivi.
“Shit, you scared me,” Vivi said, trying to sound casual while she discreetly wiped away the tears on her eyes. “I just needed to get out a little bit and—I don’t know, think.”
Nami raised an eyebrow. “… About?”
“My father. The kingdom. What will happen to it.” Vivi tried to compose herself. “The usual.”
“No, not the usual. We’ve talked about this stuff before, but now…” Nami said. “You’ve got that look.”
“What look?”
“The ‘I’m putting the world on my shoulders’ kind of look. The ‘I won’t let anyone help me’ look.”
Goddamn this tangerine-haired girl, Vivi cursed. She had just read her like a book.
She scoffed. “I wasn’t thinking that.”
“Yeah, right,” Nami responded sarcastically. “Listen, I’m not gonna pretend I know what it’s like to have a whole country’s destiny on your hands, but I may know how it feels to have your people depend on you. It’s a big responsibility, perhaps too much of a responsibility for only one person to bear, but I need you to know that it doesn’t have to be like that, Vivi. You don’t have to fight it alone.”
“I know, but I just don’t want to drag you any more than I’ve already had. You’ve all been so incredibly kind to me. How can I allow my friends to willingly starve and walk in a desert for days just to accompany me?”
Surprisingly, Nami laughed. “Oh, girl, you have no idea—have I ever told you about what happened to my hometown, Cocoyasi Village?”
Vivi didn’t know how to take Nami’s reaction. “I—I don’t think so.”
“Well, long story short, when I was little, a group of pirate fish-men took over my village and the entire island. They found out I was good at maps, so they forced me to draw their maps and routes for them, and they make me join their crew. They promised me that if I stole a hundred million berries, I could buy my village’s freedom, and they would leave. Anyway, fast-forward ten years, when I met Luffy. I had almost all the money. All I needed was 7K, and I could finally come back home, so after I accepted to work with the crew and I got the bellies, I stole their ship and everything that was with it, leaving them stranded in the middle of the ocean.”
Vivi had to stop herself from letting her mouth drop. She knew Nami was a thief, so of course, she had to steal from people, but she had never imagined she had stolen from the crew. Her crew.
“Yeah, not one of my proudest moments.” Nami clicked her tongue. “But do you know what they did when they found out? They came to pick me up again. Even after all the lies, the manipulation and the betrayal, they still… came. And, obviously, I still tried to push them away too, swearing no one could ever help me. When in reality, they were the only ones who could.”
Vivi could feel the tears forming in her eyes.
“And now looking back at it, Luffy and the crew didn’t only save me from the fish-men pirates. They saved me from myself, too, you know? From the Nami that was turning bitter, and untrusting and just, really sad. Like, I didn’t realise how much fucking hatred I was holding until I met them.” Nami chuckled. “So, even if I have to cross a desert, twenty or a hundred, I’m never letting anyone go through what I went through alone. Especially not you.”
Vivi smiled timidly, feeling the blood coming to her cheeks. She didn’t know what to say. “I think the crew is very lucky to have you.”
“Oh, I know.” Nami chuckled. “And the crew is very lucky to have you, too.”
Vivi smiled again, feeling warmer inside. Nami always seemed to know what to say to cheer her up, and she was right. She wasn’t alone, and most importantly, she didn’t want to be alone. But it wasn’t like she could just decide to feel a certain way and start fully trusting the crew and share the responsibility of her kingdom. She had to take it one step at a time, and trusting Nami seemed to be the perfect way to begin.