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It started out as a feeling
He held out his hand.
"Will you join us? You need the map too, don’t you? And the treasure…"
"I’m not going to become a pirate." Wasn’t that obvious? She thought she had made her feelings on pirates pretty clear in the short time since they had met. Maybe he was particularly dense? Or maybe stubborn was the right word. Still though, this Luffy guy was fairly strong. He had made short work of one of Buggy’s top crew members, along with that extremely large circus lion.
And this particular “pirate” didn’t seem extremely bloodthirsty, either. She remembered the way he had defended that dog, of all things, saving some of the dog food from that shop the dog was always guarding. At the very least, he was a kid with good intentions.
She smacked his outstretched hand.
"Rather than ‘partners’, let’s just say we’re cooperating. Helping each other to achieve our mutual goals."
Something was different about this pirate, and not just the whole rubber kid thing (though that was really really weird too). She was going to figure out what it was.
Which then grew into a hope
Why?! Why was he still fighting?? Luffy was covered in wounds, barely managing to keep up with the cat-like man. If things continued at this rate, he’d be killed! Or at least severely wounded. And for what? The pride of being a pirate? The life of a girl he’d barely spoken to? No, she knew what it was, though this came as a surprise to her (when had she gotten to know this kid so well that she knew how he thought? She chalked it up to the simplicity of how his mind worked and moved on).
No, it was because he had a connection with that other kid. Usopp, was it? “For the pride of a friend”, Luffy would have said. Though the pride of pirates did play a smaller part, she thought. And it wasn’t that she didn’t want to be here, she did. But that was the most surprising thing. Since when did she go out of her way to help someone when there wasn’t a significant profit for her in it? It seemed a lot of things had changed in her life the past few weeks without her realizing it. Not that it was of particular consequence, though. The biggest truths were still the same, looming over her life.
"GOMU GOMU NO…BELL!!!"
Kuro fell to the ground, unconscious after the head butt. She wouldn’t be surprised if he had gotten a serious concussion after that.
"I can’t believe it!! He defeated Kuro…The Thousand Tricks Pirate?!?! THAT’S IMPOSSIBLE!!!"
Obviously it wasn’t, but she couldn’t blame them, she was taken aback as well. Though there was another feeling rising from deep in her gut. Pride? Relief? One more weird thing to analyze later.
"I AM MONKEY D. LUFFY! I will never lose to a pirate that leaves the sea behind. A pirate will leave his name only when he dies. Remember my name for the rest of your life! I am the person who will become the greatest pirate in the world!!" Yeah, definitely some of that pirate pride in there.
"AND TAKE THIS BACK!" Did he really have to throw Kuro at the rest of his crew? "DON’T EVER COME BACK AGAIN!!"
Luffy paused a moment, breathing deeply a few times before going limp.
She was there to catch him, and she led him to the ground, slowly so she wouldn’t drop him. “You must be tired.”
When he was on solid ground, and breathing fine, she asked him. “You’re very good. Even though you were injured, you still didn’t give up. What upset you so much a while ago?”
"I hate them. They were misled." So he really didn’t get it?
"What are you saying? That’s the way pirates always are. It’s usual"
"I want to eat some meat." Of course he ignored her.
"Gee." She rolled his hat around her finger, bored.
Zoro showed up sometime later, covered in blood, of course. She had a feeling she was going to get used to that, eventually, but it was not that day.
He just looked at her, looked at Luffy, looked back at her, and nodded. A small smirk on his lips.
"What?"
He just shrugged (still with that extremely annoying smirk), and went to go lean against the cliff face nearby, untying his swords from his hip before sitting down, and quickly falling asleep.
She looked between the two of the sleeping pirates. Usopp too, had proven himself made of sterner stuff when he stood up to Kuro like that, and she was sure he’d earned some respect from Zoro while they were out fighting. She began to fidget with the hem of her skirt as she sat next to a sleeping Luffy and thought.
Maybe…
Maybe there were different ways to be a pirate. Luffy was pretty dead set on his views, and they had to come from somewhere. They were nowhere near strong enough, though. Arlong would rip through them in 2 seconds flat if given the chance. Her hand froze. It had been a few days since she had thought about Arlong. She felt Zoro’s gaze on her, noticing the change in behavior. But he just shrugged after a moment, and closed the eye he had had open, presumably going back to sleep.
So maybe not Luffy. She continued fidgeting, and let out the breath she didn’t know she had been holding. Maybe someone someday would come across Arlong. Someone like Luffy, with a crew as loyal as Zoro had proven himself to be. Maybe they’d see what he had done to her town and, presumably, to others like it. Maybe they’d be strong enough to take a stand, and maybe they’d win. Maybe Arlong’s tyranny would come to an end.
Maybe, one day, when all of this was over, when she bought her town back, and Arlong was not but a terrible scar on her and her family and her town. Maybe then she’d find these guys again.
And maybe they’d forgive her.
Which then turned into a quiet thought
Which then turned into a quiet word
"What are you talking about, get on the boat." Zoro addressed Usopp
"Yeah, we’re already friends, aren’t we?"
Was that what they were? A group of merry misfit friends? She supposed she wasn’t really all that surprised, Luffy wanted everyone to be his friend.
It was just…
Nobody had ever used the word friend with her before. Not that that had changed per-say, but it was implied.
"I’M THE CAPTAIN RIGHT?" She thought she saw a tear in Usopp’s eye as he yelled and jumped. Yeah, she understood that.
"Don’t be stupid! I’m the captain!"
She chuckled a little as her own eyes got a little wet.
"Friend", huh?
And then that word grew louder and louder
'Til it was a battle cry
I’ll come back when you call me
No need to say goodbye
One day. One day she swore she’d come back. She was so close, and she couldn’t lead these people on anymore. Luffy wouldn’t like it, she knew, and Zoro (and eventually Usopp) would do what Luffy wanted, but she just couldn’t lie to them anymore.
They’re my friends.
They’re my FRIENDS!
She got up on the bow and screamed it to the open ocean, letting Arlong’s wanted poster wave in the wind as she held it, arms wide.
"THEY’RE. MY. FRIENDS!!!" She laughed, and stood there for a second, enjoying the wind and the waves.After a few moments, she stepped down onto the floor again, tears coming to her eyes "They’re my friends, and I won’t let myself hurt them."
A few tears broke from her eyes as she clutched the wanted poster to her chest, bowing her head and looking at the ground a moment. “I’m sorry…Luffy, Zoro, and Usopp I hope you get your cook…and I’ll meet you after. I hope you’ll forgive me.” She looked up at the horizon again, and wiped the tears from her eyes.
"…Please forgive me."
Just because everything’s changing
Doesn’t mean it’s never been this way before
She woke with a start, not quite remembering where she was, but she saw her bandaged hand, and recognized the carvings on the table. She was home. Nojiko must have put the blanket around her shoulders when she had dozed off.
She took a look around the house. Not much had changed here either, apparently. Nojiko was making some tangerine sauce…she must have started a few minutes ago, and left it to marinate while she went out to do god knows what.
She smiled to herself. She didn’t deserve a sister like Nojiko.
This house always made her feel somehow more whole. Like the empty parts in her heart weren’t filled, but that they were wrapped all warm and snug. She gripped the blanket on her shoulders tighter. In a way, it reminded her of the Merry. She didn’t really understand it, but that boat, and the people on it had somehow moved their way into her heart. How had they done that so easily? She made it a point to make sure nobody could get anywhere close to her, and yet…
She remembered a time when she would run home, and tell Bellemere about all the things she was learning, and brag about a new map she had drawn. How Bellemere would laugh and praise her, and toss her into the air. How Bellemere would hug her and hold her and tell her everything would be alright when she was sad. She remembered sitting down to meals, and falling asleep knowing those she cared most about were right nearby. She remembered a time before Arlong, when she felt safe in this house. In this town. At home.
She remembered all the times spent playing cards with the boys in the kitchen of the Going Merry, and all the awful jokes they told. She won them all, but Zoro put up a good fight a few times, all the more put out when his debt climbed that much higher. She remembered getting caught in a bad storm, and having to herd the boys to the right positions to get the boat in check, and how they all huddled inside after, covered in blankets. And the terrible colds they had for the next week. She remembered all the horrific times she learned she was the only one who had any lick of skill at cooking. She should have known Luffy couldn’t cook, but Usopp too? That had been disappointing to say the least. She snorted at the thought.
She remembered Luffy’s smile, so trusting, and loving, and warm. It assured you that no matter what you had to say on the matter, you were already one of his friends, and he would do anything to make sure that stayed true.
And she remembered feeling so far away from her troubles. The rocking of the merry lulling her to sleep, or staying up late making maps of Gaimon’s island, with a cup of cocoa Usopp had brought her (he said his mom had taught him, and that she had known the perfect recipe, passed down in his family for GENERATIONS…she wasn’t so sure about the last part, but it was dang good cocoa). She had felt very alone in her room, so she had told them there were mice in her room. She spent some nights in one of the spare hammocks in the guy’s room, surrounded by her crew…safe again. At home.
She turned on her heel, the blanket falling from her shoulders into a heap on the floor.
She was going to do all she could to make sure they would stay safe, at least until she had gathered enough money. She was so close. She could do this.
She wasn’t going to let Arlong take any of her family from her.
Not again.
All you can do is try to know who your friends are
As you head off to the war
"Luffy…help me" She was sobbing, looking up at Luffy with her bloodied bandaged hand, and her new wound on her shoulder still bleeding freely. She was done…finished. The marines had ignored their plight, Arlong had betrayed her, all the work of the last decade gone to waste, and the town she tried to protect marched off to defend her honor and get themselves killed. She had nothing left.
Luffy picked the hat off his head, and popped it on hers. Her eyes widened and she reached up to touch the hat on her head, as he turned around without even a second glance. He paused, crouched, sucked a huge lungful of air and screamed
"OF COURSE!!!!"
She looked past Luffy to see Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji all waiting.
"Let’s go." Luffy addressed them
To which they all simply said “Yeah.”
And then they were gone. Marching off to battle, for her sake. Not for the sake of her town, or because Arlong was a menace. But because of her. Until today, she wasn’t sure anyone would do that for her. But here was the entire populace of Cocoyashi, and The Strawhat Pirates, fighting. For her.
And she was terrified. If this ended badly—which it most certainly would—she really would be alone, left with nothing but a hat. She knew she wouldn’t let them do this alone.
But a small part of her…was happy. So so so happy that she couldn’t form words. She cupped her face in her hands and sobbed in grief and in terror and pure unadulturated happiness. In a moment she would stand up and get ready for battle, but for just a second, she let herself truly cry for the first time in 10 years.
Pick a star on the dark horizon and follow the light
You’ll come back when it’s over
No need to say goodbye
You’ll come back when it’s over
No need to say goodbye
She breathed for a few moments, and stood, regaining her composure.
She wouldn’t let this be the end. She’d see them again, she would make sure of it.
Now we’re back to the beginning
It’s just a feeling and no one knows yet
It was about an hour till dawn, and she was back in her old house. It wasn’t her home anymore. Not really. Nojiko would always make sure she had a place here, but her true home was aboard the Merry now.
She smiled to herself. She was going to be on the Merry again. She knew Luffy and Sanji wouldn’t have any qualms about it (for very different reasons), but there would be at least a few days where Zoro and Usopp would eye her a bit more closely.
But she was going to be a Strawhat. For real this time. No facades to keep, no more worrying about Cocoyashi…It was all going to be a new experience, leaving for the first time…truly leaving.
She found she was a bit nervous, actually.
But just because they can’t feel it too
Doesn’t mean that you have to forget
She looked over at the photo on the shelf of her, Nojiko, and Bellemere, and smiled.
"Bellemere, I might regret some of the things that happened…"
She thought of their smiles. Bellmere and Luffy had a lot more in common than she would have ever thought.
"But I wouldn’t trade them for the world."
Let your memories grow stronger and stronger
'Til they're before your eyes
She gathered up her things, there was some daylight coming through, and she didn’t want to miss shove-off. She took one final look around the house. “Well, Wish me luck!” She smiled as she swiftly turned to walk out the door.
As she left, though, she felt something pushing her out.
And she could have sworn she smelled tengerines and cigarettes.
As the door swung shut behind her, she smiled, and ran down the hill toward the merry. She had one last thing she wanted to do before she left.
They were gonna be talking about this heist for ages.
You’ll come back when they call you
No need to say goodbye
"NAAAAAAAAAMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!" Luffy took a large breath in, standing atop the ruins of Arlong Park, before continuing. "YOU’RE MY FRIEND!!!!"
And that was it, the battle was over, and Arlong was done. He had done it. Her hand came up to her mouth, tears flowing down her face and onto her hand, she nodded “Mmh,”
She knew this was the cry that would call her back to a whole new life.
You’ll come back when they call you
No need to say goodbye
A day a few months more than 2 years later, a red haired woman is sitting in a bar, waiting for someone.
She won’t say who, or her own name, for that matter, but she’s been waiting for a while, and the bartender did get something out of her.
"He called us here, like he always does. So here I will wait."