#Chopper is the crew's therapist

[skatingbi]

Guys imagine...Chopper new to the strawhat crew and he wants to do like one of those routine physicals with everyone and also just get to know them n shit.

Chopper like "How do you ALL have PTSD symptoms what the heck guys" and everyone just shrugs bc fuck if they know lmao

Zoro and Sanji alone are two whole cans of worms he's already mentally preparing to open, Luffy is your token ADHD kid with both inattentive and hyperactive types. Nami SEEMS fine. Except not when she tells Chopper about the Arlong pirates and he immediately makes a new page of notes.

So chopper sits everyone down and is like "Okay so. If you ever need to talk about something, ANYTHING, im here for you!" and everyone is super touched by how kind this kid is.

Everyone in some capacity does, and theyre like little therapy sessions. Some talk to Chopper more than once a week and he's perfectly fine with that. He likes helping the crew he's become a part of. Some actually talk about what affects them (nami and usopp) while others will just bust in with the most random shit known to man (luffy and i KNOW sanji would too u cant tell me otherwise). Regardless chopper listens no matter how small it is.

The only one who doesnt visit is Zoro. At first, Chopper doesnt think much of it. Zoro likes to keep to himself anyways and the kid doesnt wanna force anyone to talk to him about their problems, its counterproductive anyways to try and do that. After thriller bark, though, Chopper sits Zoro down against his will.

What he does learn though is that Zoro doesnt want to add more baggage to whatever chopper is dealing with. Despite chopper's reassurance, zoro refuses to stress the reindeer out. Its not even because zoro thinks he needs to be strong, its because zoro sees chopper as like a little brother he wants to support and take care of.

That totally doesnt make chopper tear up at all. Nope.

Zoro does talk to chopper that day about some stuff like Kuina, his childhood at the dojo, him being a pirate hunter before meeting luffy, and a few stories from before chopper joined. If they were friends before this theyre definitely best friends after.

After that, maybe once in a blue moon, zoro will go visit chopper. Sometimes he'll take a nap and other times he'll talk about something mundane. He's probably only talked about something serious maybe twice, but chopper still listens no matter what.

[heartsforseo]

Straw hats with a member who was formally a celestial dragon's sl@Ve.

A/n: hehehe I always come back... *Insert the afton's bg music* request=?? requested: <yes> <no> wc: 1,140 warning: I only write for fun so grammar could be back. + some ooc?

⭑You found it incredibly challenging to open up to others due to your reserved nature. Despite hoping that Jinbe's arrival would provide an opportunity for conversation, your shyness prevented you from engaging with him. Thus, when a celestial dragon attacked the sunny and remembered you, the entire crew was taken aback by the unexpected turn of events.

⭑Luffy would be SHOOK amid the battle and pause for a bit.

⭑He'd turn and look for you, looking for an affirmation.

⭑Would shout your name a million times until you say something.

⭑When you said yes he'd have mixed feelings (sad and mad generally). Questions would start popping up, leaving him wondering why you hadn't said anything from the beginning.

⭑After he's done with the celestial dragon, he'll drag you and push you to talk.

⭑After your explanation, becoming the pirate king and destroying all the celestial dragons would give him more reasons to do so.

⭑Zoro wouldn't hear about you being a slave. He's either lost or focused on eliminating the marines guarding the boat.

⭑So when he returned to the ship and noticed the uncomfortable atmosphere, he would be perplexed and ask what had happened.

⭑He's not good with words and comforting so he'll just shrug about it.

⭑But he'd still be worried of course. He'd mutter "You can talk to me when you need someone, you know?"

⭑You turned around, making sure that he said it. But he'd turn and walk away.

⭑He's blushing inside and out so I hope you'll take his words seriously!

⭑Unlike Zoro, Nami would be mad AFFF.

⭑She's not just mad at the celestial dragon but also you! The Straw Hats are a family, and there should be no secrets.

⭑Big sister mode activated: When you need to open up, she will be there to provide comfort and gently guide you through the process. She will support you by holding your hand and ensuring that you feel safe and supported every step of the way.

⭑After you're done explaining, she'd try to distract you about the past and would do shopping with you and Robin.

⭑Would def give weird stares to the celestial dragons the crew would meet.

⭑She's now your therapist so congratulations!

⭑Poor Ussop. Boy was already pissing then he found out about your situation.

⭑He'd feel sad after the argument. He never realized something major had happened to you before! I mean, you know how to hide it…

⭑Tried to assist you by offering you coffee and gave some words of encouragement.

⭑For example: "At least you're with us now..." or "That's alright, it was all in the past now."

⭑At one point, he was so worried that he accidentally splashed Zoro's shirt with the coffee he was supposed to give you, causing them to bicker.

⭑It earned you a little laugh, and with that, Ussop was already happy.

⭑Sanji, on the other hand, would pause on what the celestial dragon said.

⭑Whether it was true or not, he directly attacked the celestial dragon.

⭑No female should ever go through that pain. Even if he hadn't experienced it, he knows how hard it would've been.

⭑He'd shower you with praises and affection. "You did so good holding it all up..." or "You're here with us now. You can always rely on us..."

⭑He was also the one who filled Zoro up on what was happening.

⭑Would look at you from time to time to see how you're doing.

⭑ Chopper would be SHOCKED and worried.

⭑He starts thinking about the pain and wounds that you’ve gotten. It clicked to him and finally realized why you used to have a lot of scars on your back + arms.

⭑While you’re explaining to the crew your experience, Chopper went to his office and made some anti-anxiety pills ‘cause he doesn’t want you to suffer anymore. (Robin had to kick him out).

⭑Would look at you endearingly and hold your hand around the ship. He just wants to make sure nothing bad will happen to you!

⭑Other than that, Chopper would still act normal and do some silly stuff with Luffy and Ussop.

⭑Robin is Robin. She already had some suspicions about your past, but she wants to hear the truth directly from your mouth.

⭑When she heard what the celestial dragon said she was a bit shocked. Yes, she had thought about it, but another person who suffered from the world government?

⭑She wanted to hold you right then and there.

⭑If Nami’s sitting on your left then she’d be on your right. She’d pat your back and make you some tea. (Ussop’s coffee did not make it😔)

⭑After the talk, she became your therapist (w/h Nami. 2 heads are better than one they say.

⭑Will try to keep an ear out for you when you disappear on her POV and in an unknown place. (Yes an EAR)

⭑Franky was SUPERRRR shocked. Like Robin, he knew you were hiding something either. But he didn’t push through. Your business is your business.

⭑Would be the one bombing the celestial dragon’s ship.

⭑While you were explaining your past, Franky was crying loudly and was playing sad music in the corner. (He had to get moved since his crying ws louder than ur voice)

⭑After the incident, nothing major really changed your dynamic.

⭑You both were still goofy and you’d still do the “SUPERRR” pose with him.

⭑But even so, Franky is still glad that your past didn’t affect the present negatively; instead, it made you stronger.

⭑Brook is another person who'll be shocked.

⭑He didn't think much about everyone's past. He likes to mind his own business and when someone opens up to him, he'll listen wholeheartedly and give some advice.

⭑So when you open up to the whole crew he'll just listen. He'd give some side comments here and there but that's that.

⭑Like Franky, nothing would change with your dynamic. He might be a little protective but he knows that you could handle yourself.

⭑The moral of the story is to find someone like Brook.

⭑Jimbei would be mad mad AF

⭑He's Luffy but 10x worse when it comes to the celestial dragon topic.

⭑He was never captured as a slave, but as a member of the Fishman species, he understands the immense hardships that must have been inflicted upon them. Being subjected to torture at the hands of one's kind was an even more maddening experience.

⭑But even so, Jimbei would be happy that you're finally free and is with the crew.

⭑After your discussion with the group, he would politely excuse himself and usher you into a private conversation. His demeanor would resemble that of an older brother, emanating a deep sense of care and understanding, while also imparting his valuable knowledge.

⭑Safe to say you have another buddy to talk with.

A/n: I LOVE JIMBEI SO MUCH.

[portgasdwrld]

Strawhat reactions to a chiropractor or massage therapist joining their crew? (Sfw) I know they get injured and could use it.

I love those random ideas lately 😭helps me out if my writer block💕

📂Strawhat + chiropractor/massage therapist reader joining their crew

Mostly them reacting to you proposing them a session

Luffy

He’s so fucking excited. He’s jumping everywhere, begging to be your first client. He’s already laying down in your office to have his body cracked, but then you realize as you do it that his body is literally made of rubber and it’s impossible for you to work on him. When you tell him the news, he’s whining and tells you to try again😭 He’s all pouty so you decide to massage him and that put him out to sleep real quick. He went from sulking to sleeping. When he woke up, he commented about how good this was and truly he never felt this alive in a while.

Zoro

He would totally refuse at first and complain about how he doesn’t need it and how he only needs to rest a little (a good nap), and he will be fine. But then you actually try to convince him to do it, as you saw how much his body had to go through with his training, the battles, his poor sleep position… He finally agrees only after Chopper tells him how it can better his performance and make him feel more relaxed. He barely admits that it did in fact made him feel better, but now he jumps to the occasion whenever you propose it 🚶🏻‍♀️

Nami & Robin

The girls are so freaking happy especially Nami. She pretty much asks you for a session whenever she feels sore after working hard on maps or when she had to fight. She chats to you about life and tell you some gossips. She loves to make conversation and treat it a bit like a spa day.

Robin was down to try it, but she usually use her devil fruit if she feels sore somewhere and need to release some built up tension, because of stress or battles. Basically, she never needed someone for that, but after Nami told her how amazing you were, she gave it a try. She’s mostly silent and take this time to relax her body and empty her thoughts.

Usopp

He’s a bit scared at first because he heard some people talk about horror stories at the chiropractor. He heard some people got their bones cracked with no going back to normal or how some doctor were secretly psychopath 💀💀💀 To say the least, he really didn’t see the appeal to risk his life like this 😔 If you poke fun at his ego, he might do it just to prove it to you that he isn’t scared (his legs are shaking the moment he enters your office). He has difficulty relaxing which put you off , You have to wait for couple minutes, make him sips some relaxing tea. When it finally happens, he’s bragging about how cool it is and how everyone should do it🙄 there is legit nothing to be scared off pfff???

Sanji

I don’t know why, but I get the feel Sanji would somewhat be shy 😭 When you ask him if he wanna have a session to help with his stress, he would just look at you like 😳?? He would try to make analogy to food, like it’s a bit like how he hit(?) the meat before cooking it so it’s tender, but in that case it’s gonna make him relaxed. You kinda just stare and nod because whut 😭 He honestly could use it with all the cooking he does and the fights. He loved it but he got flustered a lot. He was red-shy when he left 🚶🏻‍♀️

Brook

He’s a skeleton.

Franky

Finally FRANKYYY, this man was BORN for this. He is so excited and is so talkative. He asks you when you started and why did it became your profession. He pretty much tell you to only focus on the back of his body because it’s less solid than the rest of his cyborg body. So you went in for a massage and he’s really vocal through it. As it ends, he tells you he’s happy you joined and he will be a regular which makes you laugh because you two are literally on the same boat lol 😭

[holymolyineedtherapy]

My Strawhat Headcanons Part One:

Luffy

This guy's CLINGY

Like not just to people but to things as well

It's only a couple of things as he doesn't own a lot but what is his, he makes sure that nothing abd happens to it.

Actually loves when it's chill and quiet on the ship

It allows him to sit and listen to the ocean and sea critters, listen to the Sunny, to Zoro's swords, Usopp's Kabuto, everything

It's never truly silent for him but he does like it when he can hear the other things

He gets air time out a lot when he gets too hyper.

Most of the time it's either Franky or Jinbei that just 'up ya go' and let him dangle in the air for a bit.

The first time Franky did it, Luffy just froze. Everyone thought he got pissed off but turns out it just calmed him down.

Is surprisingly the guy most of the crew goes to for advice?? He and Robin tend to be the crew therapists even though it's mainly just them bluntly pointing out things about the others.

Always the starter of the cuddle piles

It usually starts with him just snatching someone and laying down then anyone who walks by gets sucked in and trapped

Some of them act like they hate it but make no attempts to get out of it

Hugs everyone when he sees them for the first time in the morning

It's literally like, climb out of bed, spots someone, hug

Most of the time he doesn't even get out of bed, he'll just see someone in the cabin and pull them into a hug

I imagine he also gets random but severe chest pains. It's usually from his scar but then it makes him think of... other things and makes the pain worse.

It's rare for that to happen, but when it does, Chopper will give him some medicine, Sanji makes him a nice drink and something to eat, Nami makes plans for a short stop at a nearby island for him to explore and distract himself, and so on.

When it gets really bad he likes to lean on Zoro and take naps. He just likes to relax, knowing that Zoro will take care of anything that happens.

Loves listening to Usopps stories when it happens because it's always a good distraction that leaves him laughing.

[vdoesstuff]

If the Straw Hats had a Therapist

Sanji: ...And it turns out he ate his own leg to save me.

Therapist: Ok, you have a lot of trauma, but there's no way the rest of the crew is like this too, right?

Usopp: I watched my mother die

Zoro: My best friend died

Chopper: I was perceived as a monster for most of my life

Brook: I was the only survivor of my crew

Franky: I got hit by a train

Robin: I straight up just wanted to die

Therapist: ...

Therapist: I quit

[cal-writes]

have a bit from laws eleven sequel that probably wont make it into the finished piece but this scene was the first thing i wrote for it. the structure changed too much to properly fit it in so enjoy

-

“You’re such an ungrateful little shit.” Dr. Kureha is as friendly as ever, sneering at Law when she finally spots him emerging from the crowd.

“Dr. Kureha!” Chopper bounces away from his side to hug the old hag around the middle. She pulls a grimace, holding both her arms into the air (but Law can see the smile in her eyes). Law follows at a leisurely pace. By the time he reaches the pair, Kureha has extracted herself from Chopper.

“Pleasure to see you again, too.” Law tells her and extends his hand. Kureha shakes it begrudgingly. The little thumb drive passes between them with a simple sleight of hand, before Law burrows it deep in his pocket. “Appreciate you coming to see me.”

Kureha scoffs. “Like I’d go through the trouble for you brats.” She sneers but still strokes Chopper's head when he bumps into her side. “You’re lucky I have to be here anyway.” She points over her shoulder to where Dalton stands by a booth for dental implants, deeply engrossed in a conversation.

“I take back the gratitude then.” Law says and Kureha squints at him.

“Don’t test me, boy.” She warns, before she heads to the side out of the walkways of the crowd. “What do you need that shit for? Haven’t asked about it in a decade. You know which corner I had to dig this out of?” Kureha talks quietly, keeping her eyes on the people around them.

Law feels his neck prickle anyway. He hates crowds. They aren’t here for a job (his crew at least - the Straw Hats happen to have some big shot plastic surgeon in their sights who has some sort of rare artifact in his possession but they promised Chopper to wait until the convention was over so he could mingle - Law had offered to chaperone and he too wanted to mingle with people of his trade) but given their lives, it always pays to be cautious.

He shrugs, hand tightening around the thumb drive in his pocket (remembers the shape of it still). “Have to deal with it eventually.” He says.

Kureha snorts. “Finally stopping with the repression, then? Next you’ll tell me you’re seeing a therapist.”

“Maybe I’ll find one here.” Law says, deadpan.

“May the gods help to poor fucker that has to lay you on the couch.” She replies and Law smiles. (If Chopper weren’t here he would mention that he will apologize to Zoro next time they fuck on a couch).

“Always good to see you, Doctor.” He tells her and Kureha laughs.

“You too, kid.”

[onlytibki]

One day the SH crew arrives at an island entirely populated by therapists and Chopper breaks down crying in relief on his little reindeer hands and knees

[hexellent]

“Look, I love Chopper as much as the next guy. But I think we need a therapist on the damn crew…”

[alexoreality]

PSYCHOLOGY GRADUATE! Luffy AU where...

Luffy is sailing in the Grandline and he's a well known Therapist under the code name; Lucifer. He has patients every day that he writes to all the while being a captain to a very VERY mentally unstable crew. But Nami's okay now, Chopper, and Zoro are good too.

The rest are a bit... They're still under that 'self-deprecating' list

Franky is just SSUUUPPPEEERRRR

[kudosmyhero]

Birds of Prey (vol. 2) #2: Endrun, pt. 2 - The Rage of the White Canary

Read Date: January 09, 2023 Cover Date:August 2010 ● Writer: Gail Simone ● Penciler: Ed Benes ◦ Adriana Melo ● Inker: Ed Benes ◦ Mariah Benes ● Colorist: Nei Ruffino ● Letterer: Steve Wands ● Editor: Janelle Asselin ●

**HERE BE SPOILERS: Skip ahead to the fan art/podcast to avoid spoilers

Reactions As I Read: ● It's been a minute since I read issue 1. Argh, and there's no synopsis and I didn't take reaction notes back then. I'll just have to see if my memory gets jogged. ● (pg 2) I mean, these women all look great, but I can't help but think how unguarded their femoral arteries are considering their lives of fighting crime. Do you know how fast a person bleeds out from a wound to the femoral artery? Fast. ● Poor Penguin. I'm sure he'll be fine, though. ● this White Canary is cool as a cucumber

● Lethal hair accessories. Cool. ● Fishnets do look amazing, ngl. ● Oof, hopefully Dinah didn't lose any teeth there… ● Narrative: She's not Shiva. You never feel Shiva's emotions when she hits you. This lady seems to hate my guts. ~ curiouser and curiouser ● If looks could kill… ● Hawk and Dove are here along with Lady Blackhawk (I forgot she's from WWII and misplaced in time) ● Hawk didn't expect that… ● Hawk has a big handful of her hair, though. Is that why his name is Hank? Geddit? Hank … of hair… nevermind. Ahem. ● Meanwhile, Oracle hears a news bulletin about a Gregory Chasco dying of wounds apparently undetectable by medical science. ● Oops, the bulletin named "former Justice League member the Black Canary" is the cause of death. ● The Channel 8 chopper has eyes on Black Canary now ● Oracle yells in the intercom: "Black Canary! Quit fighting! Get out of there!" ● 12 squad cars and a police chopper are on the way. Oops. ● Before White Canary leaves, she says: "One of you will die every hour for the next six hours. You choose. Or I will." ● GCPD ain't playin'. ● Before they can decide on whether to be shot or to surrender, Penguin regains consciousness enough to tell the women weakly, "My place. Get us to my club. Safe there." ● Fight or flight? Canary chooses fight and unleashes her canary cry ● omg, Oswald has a facefull of Dove's tits and he's living for it 😂😂

● Oliver Queen was mayor of Star City? Huh. I'm not up-to-date on my Green Arrow lore. ● new person calling in to Oracle… Brian Durlan a.k.a. Savant a.k.a. Creote? ● the coloring of Oracle's eyes up close is gorgeous ● "Savant is dead, Oracle. He's dead." ● Oh, so this Creote is a different person. And he's blaming Savant's death on Oracle. ● Oh, fuuuu… I hope Barbara has a good therapist. ● Penguin needs a hospital ● "softly pillowy bosom" - hahah! ● the crew runs into a random tv set up in an alley, where another news bulletin has breaking news of Black Canary's true identity. Oh shit. ● is White Canary the child who was "abandoned"? That would explain some of the hatred… ● the girl's name is Sin and she was almost adopted by Black Canary ● Oracle: "I am the grid." Badass mode unlocked. I mean, she was always a badass. But now it's badderass. ● 👏👏👏👏

Synopsis: {none available… dammit}

(https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/Birds_of_Prey_Vol_2_2)

Fan Art: Black Canary and Huntress by spidermanfan2099

Accompanying Podcast: ● Batgirl to Oracle - episode 09

[unknownwriting]

Straw Hats (Jinbe already in and can please with Carrot too? She is just adorable). Like how they will react to meeting Luffy's s/o or Luffy is with a woman and like "she is my lover!" I think it will hilarious 🤣🤣🤣🤣👌

Summary- straws hats reacting to Luffy’s girlfriend (platonic!!)

Characters - Roronoa Zoro, Nami, Go. D Usopp 🙇🏼‍♀️, Vinsmoke Sanji, Chopper, Nico Robin, Franky, Brook, Jinbe, Carrot

Warnings- none :)

I hope carrot joins the crew she is so cute. okok so this ones gonna be short bc I have to write to many people and I also changed it a bit

Roronoa Zoro

- Let’s be honest, zoro does not really care at all.

- he knows Luffy, so he finds it a bit weird that he was able to get a girlfriend in the first place. But he doesn’t think to much about it

- in his mind, your kinda like a 2nd captain. Well the whole crew things that but what you says go.

- he’ll also always be there to protect you too, even if you don’t need it. Luffy’s…well Luffy so he’s not always there to protect you so Zoro will always be there

- y’all definitely do get in stupid situations too just like him and Luffy. So it’s not uncommon for all 3 of y’all to get into trouble

Nami

- almost refuses to believe that your dating Luffy. She just can’t comprehend what you find in Luffy, but hey! Everyone has their types

- but with that being said, Nami is not scared to all Luffy what he needs to do and when. If your gonna date Luffy you definitely gonna be Nami’s best friend

- and it’s almost like she can read yalls minds too. She knows exactly what y’all want and when y’all want it and she won’t be afraid to saying anything to

- she’s kinda like the therapist in a way, you’ll go to her and rant and then Nami will go straight up to Luffy

- although Nami is still very confused on you dating Luffy and all, she’s still gonna be super supportive and always help y’all out

Go D. Usopp 🙇🏼‍♀️

- Usopp’s kinda like Nami, he’s just a bit to confused on why you would date Luffy but he kinda doesn’t care. As long as y’all are happy

- the 3 of y’all become one hell of a trio too. Always doing stupid stuff and getting in trouble and what not

- there will be some times where Usopp is confused on why y’all are dating but then there are other times where he’s in love with y’all being together

- like Nami, Usopp is not scared to point stuff out in the relationship too. Of course he’ll just do it in his own little way

- just like Nami is your wing women, Usopp is Luffy’s. I don’t make the rules it’s just how it is

Vinsmoke Sanji

- I mean I pretty sure I don’t even have to say it, he’s jealous. So jealous it’s kinda sad.

- Sanji definitely does not understand why you would chose Luffy over him. And he’ll definitely let everyone know that he’s not happy

- but of course he not gonna ruin it for y’all. Snaji may be jealous but he’s not a jerk. He’ll still flirt with you and all that but as soon as Luffy say something he’ll stop. Of course it not often bc Luffy dense

- but just like Nami and Usopp, they’ll definitely butt into the relationship and point things out. The 3 of them just form a little trio like that

- but of course, Sanji is happy for both you and Luffy even though he’s a bit hesitant

Tony Tony Chopper

- Chopper’s a reindeer soooo he doesn’t know much about Love and all that but just like everyone else his support of course

Nico Robin

- finds y’all 100% so cute. Especially since she’s older, she just loves how y’all are young and in love

- she doesn’t butt into the relationship like the others but she’ll ask you have things are going from time to time

- and if you need it, she always lend and open ear and help you work through your problems and whatnot

- she’ll also make jokes about y’all breaking up and being not able to live without each and all that. The others yell at her for that but just can’t help that

Franky

- he’s definitely a little shock when y’all do end up telling him y’all are dating. It’s just something he wasn’t really expecting

- he is soo like a dad.

- he’ll make sure Luffy is treating you right and all that, giving you attention and whatnot.

- like Robin he lend an ear just to hear you complain about Luffy or about a date y’all went on. Franky will also ask questions about everything too. It’s just him

Brook

- Now this classy-ish man right here will no doubt always play the violin for y’all when y’all have date nights and all

- he’ll definitely fantasize about y’all getting married and having kids and all. He’s definitely the best at making you all flustered

- he’s also very understand about y’all’s relationship. He’s been alive for a while so he knows a few things about relationship

- he’s honestly so happy for y’all

Carrot

- she was shocked when y’all were dating, not bc y’all were dating but just bc y’all are dating as pirates and all

- carrots like one of the youngest, so she finds y’all’s relationship so cute and everything

- she’s probably also the type to get flustered when the 2 of y’all do something couple-y and romantic

- carrot also loves to hear when you talk about y’all’s dates and all the romantic(??) things Luffy does for you

Jinbe

- he’s so unbelievably happy for y’all when he finds out y’all start dating. He knows it’s hard to date and all as a pirate so he’s happy y’all found something

- just like Robin and Franky, he’ll always lend an ear for you to rant and all and Jinbe will always say something to Luffy about it too. The 3 of them make up a little morale support group

- Jinbe is really wise and all so from time to time he’ll say a few words of wisdom just to make sure y’all’s relationship is toll going strong and all

[springwritess]

Hi so um I just lost someone in my family and I was wondering if you do some hcs for Law and Zoro comforting their so.

anime: one piece

dedicated to: @a-bi-who-just-wants-sweaters

note: im sorry for your loss. if you want to talk to anyone about it, my DMs are open. you don’t have to go through this alone. your feelings matter. i also decided to do all the strawhats and law

***

Luffy:

Luffy tends to be a bright, simple minded person. He takes things at face value and usually isn’t serious. However, he genuinely does care about his crewmates - which includes you. As Rayleigh described, Luffy has a special type of observation haki. It allows him to understand the emotions of others. He was the first person to notice your grief.

Luffy is a man of action. The way he’ll try to help you cope by giving the space you need, or the physical affection you need. It depends on what you’re feeling that day. He understands how difficult it is to loose a family member, and how these things take time. If you’re not feeling particularly bright or happy on some days, he’ll try his best not to annoy you. If you’re looking for a hug or a shoulder to cry on, Luffy will offer it to you. He’ll even give you his strawhat and place it on your head. It’s special to him, and so are you to him. It’s his way of showing everything will be okay.

If you’re feeling particularly bad on a day, he might come into your room and see if there’s anything he can do. He’ll try to make you food or give you something to cheer you up. Luffy might try to make jokes (such as making silly faces) to get you to laugh. If it isn’t working, he’ll sit there with you. If you want to talk, that’s fine. If you don’t, that’s also fine. He won’t pry.

There are also days where Luffy is also feeling particularly blue, whenever he thinks about Ace. On those days, he may come and talk about the horrors he faced during Impel Down, or the war he had to go through. On those days, you’ll open up and talk about your family member. You’ll be there for each other, and help each other cope and find ways to push through in life.

Zoro:

Zoro is someone who’s quiet and is not the best at showing his concern for others through his actions. He shows his concern and care for his crewmates (you included) by little things. Checking to see if they’re okay, protecting them in battle and staying close to them. He’s not the type to voice his love and care for his crewmates.

Zoro would check up on you every now and then. He would keep his space, because he knows having too many people check up on you can be overwhelming. He would ask Chopper if you’re doing any better mentally. He would also ask Sanji if you’ve been skipping any meals.

The times he would check up on you would be at night. Zoro doesn’t seem much. He usually gets about 3-4 hours of sleep a night, and take naps throughout the day. If he realizes you’re up and wondering about the ship, he might talk to you and see if you’re doing any better. Whether you talk to him a lot or a little, he’ll still stay and listen to you.

Sometimes, he may ask you to join him while he’s working out. You’ll stay with him, whether that means you’ll work out or not. It’ll comfort you just having him close by. Whenever you do choose to excercise, it’ll be relieving. It takes your mind off things, and it greatly improves your mood.

Nami:

Nami will be one of the first people to realize there’s something wrong. She’ll see you one night silently crying to yourself. She’ll come up to you and see what’s wrong. She’ll sit you down and try to talk to you. She’ll comfort you, whether it’s through her words, giving you a hug or just sitting there with you. Nami understands grief takes time, she’ll be there with you 100% along the way.

Nami is one of the first people you’ll go to whenever you feel like talking about your family member. She’ll sit there and listen to you talk about them for hours. Sometimes, she’ll share stories of Bellemare.

You have your tasks and duties on the ship. Sometimes, it’s difficult for you to be able to fulfill your role of being a strawhat. Nami will make sure everything goes along smoothly whenever you need to sit down and be by yourself. She’ll assign everyone orders, and they’ll happily do your job if it means letting you feel better.

She’ll also check up on you now and then, like a big sister. She’ll ask Sanji if you’re eating. She’ll ask Chopper if you’re feeling any better emotionally. If you aren’t doing those things, she’ll come and talk to you. She’ll gently remind you that eating healthy is important. She’ll also remind you that everyone is there for you. You can talk when you’re ready.

Usopp:

Unlike Nami, Usopp isn’t as perceptive when it comes to learning about the feelings of others on the crew. It might take him awhile to notice the little things, like how you look tired all the time, or how you’re overeating/not eating at all during meals. He’ll still try to be there for you however

Usopp understands the pain of losing a close family member too well. He lost his mother at a young age. He’ll try to talk to you about how you feel, and give you some of his own personal experiences. He may sit closer to you during meals.

When the crew is fooling around and playing games, he’ll make sure you’re always there. He’ll want you to have a good time, so he’ll make sure you’re included. By doing this, Usopp wants to remind you that you’re not alone. The crew cares about you so much.

Sanji:

Sanji is emotionally perceptive, and he’ll realize right away something bad happened to you. He starts to notice you’re skipping meals and spending less time with the crew. You would always have a blank look on your face, staring out to see. His first instinct would be to rush over to you and see if you’re sick, or if anything is wrong. You’d brush him off, and say everything is fine. You would explain to him you’re just tired. This would happen frequently. Eventually, Sanji would give you space. He doesn’t want to pressure you into telling him anything.

Sanji would instead focus on making sure you’re eating enough, and eating the right foods. He’ll bring food to your room if you don’t come down during a meal. He’ll make you small healthy snacks throughout the day too. He’ll focus on what he’s capable on, which is your eating habits. If you have trouble sleeping at night, he’ll make you tea. He’ll make sure there’s always a cup of tea waiting for you every night before he heads to bed. When he’s on night watch, he’ll leave a kettle on the stove for you.

If you do choose to tell him what happens, he’ll be 100% willing to listen. He’ll drop whatever he’s doing to hear you talk. He won’t interrupt you, or become emotional, or try to offer you any advice. Despite acting like an idiot sometimes, Sanji is emotionally smart. He knows that he can’t solve anything, or that advice won’t always help. He’ll sit there and listen patiently.

Sanji may invite you into the kitchen to watch him cook if you’re sitting by yourself some days. He’ll make jokes, and talk about things to cheer you up. You’ll help him set and clear the table, which makes you feel much better.

Chopper:

Despite being the doctor of the crew, Chopper is quite naive. He isn’t as good as noticing things as the other crewmates. Chopper would have no idea anything is upsetting you, until you bring it up to him one day. He would be fooling around with Luffy and Usopp, and you would ask him if you’d like a checkup. He’ll take you to do one.

You’ll first ask him about his stance on mental health, and how important he thinks it is. He’ll explain to you, that your mental and emotional health is just as important as your physical health. You’ll bring up your family member who recently passed away, and how difficult it’s been for you.

You would see Chopper every week about how you’re feeling. Chopper would remain calm, and won’t pry for details. He’ll listen to everything you say, and may even take notes. He would become your therapist in a way. Everything you tell him, he would keep a secret. He doesn’t want to loose your trust.

Robin:

Similar to the other strawhats, Robin also had an extremely difficult life. Her home island was destroyed when she was just a child. She lost her mom at a young age and lived a life on the run for twenty years. It’s difficult for her to open up, and she still struggles with it till this day. She’ll understand that you’ll need time to process what happened. She won’t talk to you about it, or ever bring it up to you.

She may recommend a book for you to read, to help you make you feel better. She’ll make you a cup of tea too whenever she’s going to read her book. You’ll find yourself often reading with Robin side by side. It’s a great stress-reliever for the both of you.

If you ever do choose to open up to Robin, she’ll listen to everything you say. She may give you words of advice, or offer you words of comfort. She’ll almost act like your mom in a way afterwards.

Franky:

Franky may act like an idiot sometimes, but he does have rare times when he acts mature. These are times where a crew member needs his help, or if he needs to step up and do his job as a strawhat. This is one of those times.

It’ll take him a bit of time however to notice that something is wrong. Similar to Robin, he won’t pressure you to say anything to him. He’ll just do what he’s capable of. He may offer you a cola drink once in awhile. It makes him feel better, so he’ll try to give you one I’m hopes of making you feel better

Franky may ask you to try out some of the cool inventions he’s working on. He may even invite you to his workshop, where you’ll watch and try to help him out. It’ll just be small things, such as handing him a tool or trying to tighten a screw. You’ll start to bond with Franky from here on out.

Brook:

Brook understands the pain of losing someone close to you. He lost his friends before his eyes and had to live around their dead bodies for decades. He’ll be extremely mature when it comes to try and helping you through these difficult times.

Brook copes through music. Expect him to play various pieces for you every day, some happy and some sad. Many will give you the feeling of happiness and peace. His music will bring back many memories of your deceased family member. Some days you’ll listen to his music and just cry.

Brook will also give you music tapes to listen to in your room. They all be songs he written and performed himself. You’ll find yourself often in your room, listening to music and reminiscing about your family member.

Trafalgar Law:

Law may seem like a cold, calm and collected individual. He can even be ruthless at times. He tends to keep to himself and doesn’t find himself having many friends. He does however, deeply care about his crew. He’s not the best at showing his affection towards them, but he does genuinely does care about them. He cares about you.

Law will realize immediately that something happened. He’ll assume you’re sick or injured, but it’ll turn out that’s not the case. He’ll ask you about it. If you’re not comfortable opening up and sharing yet, it’ll frustrate him. He wants to help you, but he wouldn’t know what’s bothering you. If you do tell him early on, it’ll shock him. He’ll stay calm however, and try to help you feel better as much as he can.

Similar to Chopper, he’ll check up on you every week. He’ll ask you how you’re feeling and other questions. He won’t pry, and you’ll tell him as much as you’re comfortable telling him. He’ll write down everything you say. He’ll become your therapist in a way too.

Law isn’t the best at expressing his affection and care towards his crew, so he’ll ask the others to do so. He’ll tell them to remind you in both subtle and grand ways that everyone cares. Expect lots of hugs from Bepo. Your other crewmates will try to spend more time with you.

Law will also give you space. He understands that some days you need time by yourself. Law also has days where he needs his own space. If you’re feeling particularly bad on one day, Law won’t bother you. He won’t force you to complete your tasks on the crew and will ask the others to do them instead. He may complete them if nobody else can.

At the end of the day, all your crewmates care about you. They want to remind you that you’re not alone. That it’s okay to be sad. That it’s okay to cry. That it’s okay to have bad days. They all express their love and care for you, each in their own way.

You are not alone.

[anubislover]

Welcome to the Heart Pirates, Nami-ya chapter 9: Mark of Property

She was back in her room. Not the comfortable bedroom she shared with Robin, which smelled of mikans, fresh flowers, and old books and was full of colorful, girly furniture and cute clothes. There was no golden glow from the lamps or cups of tea steaming on the coffee table. No calls from Luffy to come play a game or strands of Brook’s latest song floating in through the open window.

This was her room in Arlong Park.

Her prison.

Sea charts covered every available surface—tables, chairs, piled in stacks on the floor, hanging from the walls. All of them meticulously hand-drawn, but not on paper—the parchment was made of skin, the ink blood, the pen in her hand a human bone. Furiously, she mapped out her latest chart on a piece of freshly flayed-and-dried skin, Mr. Genzo’s scarred stretched out flat and lifeless, staring up at her.

Her hands were wet with blood, palms torn apart and fingers so twisted it was miracle she could even hold the pen, but she knew she couldn’t stop. Shackles bound her to the hard metal desk, harshly cutting into her thin wrists. The room was swelteringly hot, like a sauna, and sweat mixed with the blood dripping down her fingers onto the parchment, staining it and smudging the details.

“Still alive in here, Nami?” a cruel, deep voice chuckled, his dark shadow casting over her. “Got everything you need? I’m happy to head to town to pick up more paper.”

“I—I’m fine,” she croaked, hand trembling. “I have everything I need.”

Cold, rough fingertips combed through her hair. “Shahahahaha! Of course you do! I’ll always provide for my cute little navigator.” Without warning, a large, webbed hand grabbed her orange locks, slamming her head down onto the desk, smearing the wet blood across her cheeks.

“Look at what you’ve done, you nasty girl! You messed up your chart!” he sneered. Out of the corner of her eye, Nami could see a long, jagged nose and shark teeth viciously grinning down at her. “Guess you’ll need new parchment after all. Take your pick—the rubber boy, or your sister?”

“No, please!” she screamed, frantically trying to claw at his arm, struggling to get free. Her shoulder burned like it was being pierced by a thousand hellfire needles, the swirling, vicious shark insignia once more being slowly etched into her arm. “Don’t hurt them!”

“You’re one of my most trusted officers, Nami—I’ll do anything to help you achieve your dream,” he laughed mockingly. “You’ll stay in this room and draw your charts forever. That’s your place in the Fishman Pirates!”

“Leave me alone!”

“Leave you alone? I could never do that.” Arlong leaned forward until the tip of his saw nose lightly dented the fragile flesh of her cheek. His eyes were like those of a Sea King’s, full of predatory malice. “After all, you’re mine.”

“Nami? Nami! Nami wake up!”

Brown eyes snapped open as Nami was jerked awake, arms instinctively crossing over her face in defense. She tried to kick her assailant, but her legs were tangled in the blankets.

“Whoa, girl, it’s me!” Ikkaku said worriedly, concern written all over her face as she gently stroked her shoulder, hand gently encircling her wrist to pry it from her eyes. “It’s ok, you’re safe. I’m not going to hurt you.”

Heart racing while sweat dripped down her back, it took her a minute to register the engineer’s voice. “Wha…what happened?” she rasped, throat tight and dry. She gratefully accepted the glass of water Ikkaku offered her, the cool liquid fully waking her up. Rubbing her eyes, she took in the room around her. It was the one she shared with Ikkaku on the Polar Tang. There were no charts drawn on the skin of her friends, no blood, no Fishmen looking to enslave her.

“You tell me. Sounded like you were having one hell of a nightmare.”

With a tired groan Nami tried to push away the image of her former captain by focusing on untangling her feet. She glanced at her left arm, grateful to see the pinwheel and tangerine instead of the primal shark. “Yeah. A nightmare. Barely remember it now, though.”

The older woman frowned, clearly not believing her, but she’d learned in the two months they’d spent together that it was best not to pry into the navigator’s past and thoughts. “If you do remember and want to talk, I’m here for you. Or, Penguin’s kind of an amateur therapist—got his work cut out for him on this ship, but he’s a good listener if you need to get something off your chest.”

“I’m fine,” Nami insisted, running a hand through her damp hair. Though not as bad as the dream, the small bedroom felt stifling. “Really, it’s nothing to worry about. Probably just something I ate last night.”

“Alright. Why don’t you grab a shower and we’ll head to breakfast? I’ll strip your bed and toss them in the hamper for you.”

Looking down at the yellow sheets, she was shocked at how sodden they were. Had she been sweating that much? “Good idea. Thanks, Ikkaku,” she sighed, grabbing a pair of short shorts and a low-cut crop top and heading towards the women’s bathroom across the hall. The ship felt stuffier than usual, even though they’d surfaced just the other day. Nami was pretty sure it was because it had been nearly three weeks since they’d made port—Law had insisted on waiting before selling off their stolen goods, more interested in putting distance between themselves and the Marines first to play it safe. It was a fair point, but the thief had argued that the longer they waited, the more time the Navy had to put out descriptions of the various art pieces they’d stolen, which could also put them in danger.

Eventually, after much quarreling, a compromise was reached—they’d fenced Kujakumaru’s watch and melted down the squid statue at Knox Island, and also faxed a photo of Nami burning the blackmail ledger to the nearby Marine base. This would lead the authorities to assume they were making their way down the most southern path of the Grand Line, but in actuality, the Polar Tang would go north, cutting through two of the routes to instead reach the Isles of Grimm. Such a feat would be impossible to do on a normal ship, but the submarine’s high-tech navigational equipment, paired with an eternal pose, made it child’s play.

At first, the navigator had absolutely loved that Law was smart and cautious enough to avoid trouble, but after nearly three weeks, Nami was getting stir-crazy. As much as she’d complained about Luffy getting the crew into unnecessary danger in the name of adventure, she was starting to miss it. There had been no attacks, no mysterious phenomena, no royals in disguise that needed their help. Deep as they were underwater, even the Grand Line’s sudden storms barely affected them.

Somehow, that made her more anxious. It was like being in an isolation chamber, unable to feel the wind and sea in her bones. Or maybe she’d just gotten so used to Luffy’s mad pace that her body didn’t know what to do with itself now that he life hadn’t been endangered in almost a month.

Standing under the cool spray of the shower, she groaned. Part of her also wondered if her anxiety was because of the new birth control Law had put her on. The last one hadn’t been working as well as she’d liked, so he’d given her a shot of a new, stronger drug he’d developed. It wasn’t unusual for her body to react to new meds with a fever or mild insomnia for the first few days, but she was certain once her hormones adjusted to the new chemicals she’d be back to normal. Until then, she’d just have to endure feeling too hot and the occasional bad dream.

Just don’t dwell on it, she thought as she massaged shampoo into her short, mikan locks. Arlong’s gone. Luffy kicked his ass, and he can’t hurt you anymore. Absently, her hand rubbed her shoulder, fingers lightly tracing the thin scars beneath her new tattoo.

What she needed was a distraction. So long as she had something else to occupy her mind, she could push away the unease tingling beneath her skin.

Clean, cooled down, and wide awake, she threw on her clothes and shoes before joining Ikkaku, making their way towards the galley in companionable silence. She appreciated that she didn’t pry—she was beginning to consider the older woman a friend, much like Robin, but that didn’t mean she was ready to talk about her time with the Fishman Pirates. In fact, she was leery about getting too close in general—once the year was up and Luffy’s life debt was squared, their crews would be rivals at the very least.

What if they ended up clashing over the One Piece? What if their captains fought? Would she be able to stand against Ikkaku and Bepo and the others?

Sitting down at the table and shaking those thoughts from her mind, she decided to instead contemplate how different the Heart Pirates were from the Straw Hats. On an average day, by this time Zoro and Sanji would be well into their early morning squabble, Luffy’d be stuffing himself with meat, Usopp would have awed Chopper with his tall tales, there’d be deafening crashes and clangs from Franky’s workshop, and Nami would have punched at least three of her shipmates for any number of reasons.

In contrast, mornings on the Polar Tang were subdued, mainly due to the captain’s terrible insomnia. The lively crew knew better than to cause a ruckus before Law got his morning coffee, respectfully keeping their voices down until he gave them leave to talk.

In some ways, it was nice to have such a well-behaved crew, but it also made the sting of her nakama’s absence that much stronger. Sure, Luffy was a reckless idiot who was always trying to steal her food, but his carefree smile always made mornings a little brighter. Zoro and Sanji’s bickering and Usopp’s boasts were noisy yet comforting after years of traveling alone. Robin and Brook’s very presence was calming, even if the archeologist’s sense of humor was disturbing and the skeleton’s requests to see her panties drove her insane.

I wonder how they’re all doing? Nami wondered, absently pushing her scrambled eggs around her plate. Are they getting enough vitamin C without my mikans? Who’s keeping Zoro from getting lost? Is Robin ok being alone again? What about Brook? It’s not fair that he spent fifty years alone, just to lose his new crew after just a few days.

Brought out of her melancholy thoughts by Bepo taking his place next to her, she gave the bear a smile. “How’re the plans for the garden coming along?”

He returned the gesture shyly. “Pretty well. We’ve picked out a storage room to convert that should be empty once we’ve cashed in the treasure. Clione and the engineers have made some great progress with the sun lamps. Of course, they need to run some tests to make sure plants can really thrive under the conditions.”

She hummed in agreement. “No sense wasting money on seeds and stuff if everything dies right away.”

Bepo nervously twiddled his claws. “I was actually hoping you could help me figure out what we’ll need and work out the costs, since you’re good with money and have real gardening experience.”

It was funny how she wasn’t even tempted to charge him a consultant fee. Scary as she would have thought traveling with a giant bear would be, Bepo was the one she had developed the biggest soft spot for. Maybe it was because it was nice to finally have a fellow navigator to talk to and the Mink was so shy she couldn’t even imagine him as a threat anymore. Or maybe having a talking animal around just made her miss Chopper slightly less. “Sure thing, though I’m no expert on growing plants indoors.”

“Still have more experience than the rest of us,” Penguin pointed out as he kindly refilled her coffee cup.

“True. It’s why I told Captain Law to put you in charge of the garden,” Clione said from the far end of the table.

She frowned at the science officer. “I’m happy to help, but shouldn’t you be in charge of it? You’re Law’s chief biologist.”

“I specialize in marine biology—my knowledge of land plants and animals isn’t nearly as advanced, and that doesn’t mean I can grow anything. You’re honestly the only one here that can get this whole greenhouse experiment to work.”

Teeth worrying her lip, she felt her stomach twist in a knot. The thought of being given such a big project on her temporary ship didn’t sit well with her. What if it wasn’t finished before the year was up? Would they have to abandon the whole thing, or would they insist on keeping her around until it was done? “I’ll teach you what I can before I leave. Ten months should be enough time for you to develop a green thumb,” she insisted, forcing optimism into her voice.

His brow furrowed beneath his blunt bangs at the mention of her leaving. “We’ll see. Before we do any of that, though, we need to get the actual room set up. Aside from sun lamps and fertilizer, we need to set up a sprinkler system, temperature control, and a ton of other stuff.”

“So, we should wait to decide on what to grow, huh?” the bear asked gloomily.

“Oh, cheer up, Bepo. Law always says it’s never too early to plan. Grimm has that great bookshop, so pick up a guide to plants and see which ones will do best in lower light and damp conditions,” Shachi offered, shoveling scrambled eggs into his mouth. His broken arm was healing nicely, a sling no longer necessary and the cast scheduled to come off tomorrow. Everyone knew he planned on keeping it, though, since Nami had signed it, the little hearts added around her name coaxing a heavy blush from the ginger.

“Assuming we ever make port,” Nami grumbled.

Sympathetic, he patted her hand. “Hey, we’ll get there; we’ve got you and Bepo as our navigators, right? How much longer is it supposed to be?”

“I actually checked this morning,” the Mink said. “If we stay on course, it shouldn’t be more than three days.”

She immediately perked up. “That’s not so bad. New clothes here I come!”

“Shhh!” Ikkaku shushed, peeking through the doorway. “Captain’s coming—chatter ends now.”

Mouths snapped closed and the crew became extremely focused on their breakfast as Law, groggy and sour, meandered into the galley, making a beeline for the full coffee pot. Penguin had prepped a fresh batch only minutes before, and without even hesitating, the captain raised the glass pot to his lips, gulping down the caffeinated elixir, barely taking a breath between swallows or even seeming to notice the brew was scalding hot.

Two months ago, the sight would have astounded and horrified Nami, but now she just rolled her eyes and let him drink without comment.

Instead, she took the chance to observe him out of the corner of her eye. She could tell he’d been getting less sleep than usual; his hoodie hung off him a bit more, the circles under his eyes were darker, and his already angular face looked narrower. The rest of the crew insisted that Law simply went through worse periods of insomnia once in a while, but Nami was certain it was because he was up late studying those ledgers. He’d spent most of the past three weeks locked away in his quarters or mucking about in the lab, and the few times Penguin had managed to drag him to the galley he’d barely paid attention to what he was eating, his amber eyes fixated on his notes. Once, Nami tried to sneak a piece of bread onto his plate to see if he’d notice, but Shachi snatched it away before the captain could accidentally take a bite.

After a few moments Law blinked away the last specks of drowsiness and turned to the crew, holding the half-finished coffee pot like a mug. “I have good news; we should be making port soon, there’s been no sight of Marines, and my contacts on Grimm are eager to take some gold off our hands.”

The pirates cheered while he fetched his morning onigiri from the fridge, strolling over to take his place at the head of the table, right next to Nami. It had become an unspoken agreement among the crew that she sit at Law’s left side during meals, though she wasn’t sure whether it was due to her status as a guest or because they had ulterior motives.

“Just gold?” she asked under her breath.

He smirked at her. “Well, gold, jewelry, paintings, and a few jewel-encrusted trinkets that I can’t actually discern the purpose of, but you get the idea. Far easier to fence than, say, chemical formulas.”

“Like the one you’ve been working on?” she accused lowly. She hadn’t been able to steal many glances at his notes, and what she had seen had been either in code or nigh-indecipherable scribblings, but with how fixated and secretive he’d been, she was suspicious.

“Why, yes, exactly like the formula for hyper-nutritious fertilizer I’ve been working on with Clione,” he replied smoothly, grin widening at her shocked expression. “Turns out Dr. Vegapunk’s work isn’t all weapons of mass destruction. I know how eager you are to set up that garden, so I thought I’d try to get that finished before we made port.”

Nami glanced at the biologist, who gave a nod of agreement, and she instantly felt reassured. Clione had a terrible poker face, so she knew it had to be the truth. “You didn’t have to exhaust yourself over that,” she scolded lightly. Now that she knew he wasn’t trying to start a war, she felt a little guilty about how much he’d pushed himself over such a minor thing.

“I wanted to have it completed so we’d know what to pick up while in Grimm. I assume you’re going clothes shopping?” he asked around a large bite of onigiri. It was kind of funny how such a fierce pirate had a habit of stuffing his cheeks like a chipmunk, but it was more relieving to actually see him properly eat again.

Mood lightened, Nami flashed a wide smile. “Yup! I’ve got belli burning a hole in my pocket and a wardrobe that needs filling. Nothing makes a girl feel better about being attacked by a giant squid like retail therapy!”  

“Speaking of clothes, were you ever supplied a uniform?”

“…yeah, why?”

He shrugged, taking another bite. “Well, considering how Grimm is an archipelago with one of the most dangerous black markets on the Grand Line, you’ll be required to wear it if you plan on leaving the ship.”

“Excuse me?” she asked, eyes narrowing dangerously.

“It’s for your own safety, Nami-ya. The place isn’t as nice as Sabaody—it’s full of brothels, drug dealers, back-alley doctors, pirates, bounty hunters, and slave traders. My uniform basically tells everyone you’re off-limits.”

“Not. Happening,” she sneered through clenched teeth, grip on her fork tightening like she might stab him with it.

There was no way in hell she was going to let Law stick her in one of his gross jumpsuits. Ikkaku might have been able to pull it off, but that was because she had that tomboyish energy; Nami preferred showing off her skin and feminine figure. Plus, she was still leaning on the theory that the Dark Doctor has some kind of weird fetish for fully clothed people, and that uniform basically covered every inch of skin south of her chin.

Most of all, the redhead despised the idea of anyone telling her what to wear. Clothing was more than just a luxury—to her, it was an expression of freedom. Her childhood had been full of hand-me-downs, and then Arlong’s horrible tattoo had further limited her wardrobe, preventing her from wearing certain shirts for fear of people seeing the shameful brand.

That jumpsuit, with the Heart Pirate Jolly Roger plastered all over, was basically a mark of ownership, and Nami would not be another captain’s property.

Law glared down at her, unimpressed at being refused. “I’m giving this order to everyone; if we were heading to a safer island, I wouldn’t care, but the last thing I need is for you to get kidnapped because you’re not recognized as a member of the Heart Pirates.”

Tension simmered in the air as she matched his stare. “I can take care of myself, Trafalgar, and I’m not a member of the Heart Pirates. We agreed nearly two months ago that you weren’t going to subject me to your crew’s dress code, and I’m holding you to that.”

“That was before I realized just how much of a trouble magnet you are. If I left you to your own devices, I’d find you in the grasp of a giant squid monster again. So, if you want to get off the ship, you’re going to wear the damn uniform and stick with at least three of your shipmates.” Taking another swig of coffee, he met her angry eyes unflinchingly. “Otherwise, I’ll have to keep you on my arm the whole trip, and I promise I have no intention of going clothes shopping. So, what’s it gonna be, Nami-ya?”

She glanced around the galley, hoping for anyone to back her up. She knew the guys loved watching her prance around in her skimpy outfits, so surely they wouldn’t want Law to cover her up and make her wear such a conservative, ugly jumpsuit, right? And Ikkaku was always cheering her on when she sassed the captain, so of course she could count on her for backup.

But she found no support among the crew. Everyone was either nodding in agreement or not even paying attention.

“Seriously?” she growled.

“We get it’s not your style, Nami, but he’s right—safety comes over fashion,” Penguin said, voice gentle but expression stern. “You’re a wanted pirate whose face is known all over the Grand Line—of all of us, you’d be the most tempting target for low-life bounty hunters.”

“You’ll appreciate it when you get there,” Ikkaku added. “It’s always damp and cold there, and it’s not like any of my warmer clothes fit you.”

“It’ll just be for a few days,” Jean Bart supplied helpfully. “And maybe if things go well, Captain Law will ease up and let you wear your normal clothes.”

Said captain gave Nami a considering smirk. “Maybe. So long as everyone is on their best behavior.”

With no backup and no alternative, the navigator knew she had no choice but to give in, even as she seethed inside. Part of her argued that she was making a big deal out of nothing, that it was just an outfit, but it just didn’t sit right with her. He’d assured her when they first made their deal that he wouldn’t make her wear the uniform, but here he was going back on his word.

Just like Arlong had.

She shook her head, banishing the thought. For all his faults, Law was a far cry from Arlong, and an ugly uniform was nothing like selling her out to the Marines for the sake of denying her freedom. Hell, she even had three days—more than enough time for him to change his mind. It was such a little thing, after all, so surely if she complained enough he’d give in to her demands to save himself the headache.

XXX

Three days later, the Polar Tang had successfully docked, and Law was leading Nami and half the Heart Pirates through the shady port. Jean Bart, Bepo, Ikkaku, and Uni all carried heavy chests filled with gold bars, artwork, and other goods Law’s contacts could easily fence, while the rest of the group carefully guarded them, keeping an eye out for pickpockets, enemy pirates feeling brave, and undercover Marines.

Appearance-wise, the Isles of Grimm certainly lived up to its name—a thick miasma of fog settled over the port, while narrow streets were lined with buildings made out of dark wood and stone, giving a very claustrophobic feeling. Scantily dressed women called from brothel balconies, and shady figures beckoned unwary travelers into shadowed alleys. Yet despite the atmosphere, it was unquestionably a thriving, bustling port, and the large assortment of shops were to die for. Clothing, books, tools, weapons, cartography equipment, gardening centers, souvenirs, food stalls—the place was practically bursting with places to spend money.

Unfortunately, Nami’s excitement was thoroughly dampened by her outfit. Despite the island’s cool temperature, she felt way too hot in her thick, canvas jumpsuit. Bulky, cumbersome, and unflattering to her gorgeous figure, she was positive it was what she’ll be forced to wear in Hell. It wasn’t even vibrant orange like Bepo’s, but bland off-white like everyone else’s. She was at least able to unbutton the neck and roll up the sleeves show her cleavage and vent the heat, and she’d taken in the waist a bit, but the material still felt coarse and heavy against her overheated skin. Worst of all, there was nothing she could do to hide Law’s Jolly Roger on the back and left breast pocket, branding her a Heart Pirate for all the world to see.

It made her left shoulder sting with a phantom pain, a harsh reminder of her years as one of Arlong’s officers.

“Whoever designed these uniforms should be dragged out into the street and shot,” she grumbled as she pushed down the anxiety her dark memories coaxed to the surface. She didn’t care if Law or anyone else heard her—hell, she’d been plenty vocal of her distaste over the past few days and he still insisted she wear the damn thing!

“At least they have pockets,” Ikkaku pointed out helpfully.

“Literally this thing’s only good point.”

Uni’s quiet voice beside her chimed in, “I know you don’t like it, but trust me, if Captain didn’t feel it was completely necessary, he wouldn’t go through the trouble of making you do it. At the very least, save your complaints until after we’ve cashed in our treasure—we don’t need the extra attention.”

She rolled her eyes but bit her tongue. Uni wasn’t a big talker, but when he did speak, it was usually sound advice. And given how a large group of uniformed pirates carrying goods naturally drew the eye, he definitely had a point.

That didn’t mean she wouldn’t silently pout, though.

As they strolled past the display window of a curiosity shop, Nami saw Law glance at something, then literally walk backwards to get a better look.

“Commemorative coins from the past six Reveries,” he murmured with hushed reverence, nose nearly pressed against the glass. “I’m missing a few of these.” Without even a glance back at the crew he sauntered into the store, Kikoku propped on his shoulder and wallet already in hand.

Surprised, Nami raised a curious eyebrow at Ikkaku, who giggled behind her hand. “Captain’s an avid coin collector,” she said.

Bepo added, “Every time we find treasure, he inspects every single coin in case there’s something he can add to his collection.”

“Seriously?”

“See, you have something in common,” Ikkaku laughed. “You’re both obsessed with money!”

The thief elbowed her in the side, quietly growling that she had “nothing in common with that jerk.”

“Yeah, you do,” Shachi chuckled. “Neither of you like taking orders, either, and you’re both really stubborn and irritable when you don’t get your way.”

“I am not!”

“Then what have the past few days been?” he retorted with a victorious smirk.

She glared but couldn’t quite argue the point. Admittedly, she blamed some of it on the fact that she’d still been feeling hot and anxious, and sleep had continued to be plagued with bad dreams. None so terrible that Ikkaku had to wake her up again, and half of them she honestly couldn’t remember once morning came, but it was at the point that every time she went to sleep, she woke up feeling more exhausted. She had nearly exhausted her supply of concealer covering up the circles that were forming under her eyes. So yeah, she’d been irritable, and maybe the uniform wasn’t the best hill to die on, but their captain was a grump when his insomnia got bad, so maybe they should cut her some slack!

Uni’s blunt tap to her shoulder kept her from bringing this up, as her attention was diverted to the newspaper in his hand. “Thought you might want to take a look at this—seems the world’s caught wind of our connection.”

Russet eyes widened as they landed on the headline, and she felt her heart stop as she quickly read the article.

HAS A STRAW HAT DEFECTED TO THE HEART PIRATES?

As the dust settles on the chilling attack on the Harpin mansion on Tokken Island, many are now claiming that the Heart Pirates did not act alone but were in fact aided by “Cat Thief” Nami.

A member of the Straw Hat Pirates with a bounty of 16 million belli, this elusive burglar was believed to have vanished with the rest of her crew, but several eyewitness reports claim that it was she who assisted “Surgeon of Death” Captain Trafalgar Law, a pirate with a bounty of 200 million belli, in his assassination of former Head of Navy Intelligence Baron “Gorudotako” Harpin Gerald.

“Of course, it was her!” states Inebura Kujakumaru, the late Baron Harpin’s nephew. “She may have struck me down when I valiantly attempted to stop her, but not before I got a good look at her tattoo. Every man’s seen her wanted poster, so I’d recognize it anywhere.”

“I don’t know how those pirates got into my brother’s party, but it had to be her,” confirms Inebura Beatrix, his mother. “Who else could have gotten past Gerald’s security? She and Trafalgar Law are in cahoots, yet the Navy hasn’t done anything about it!”

If such bold claims are true and it is “Cat Thief” Nami, could this be a sign that the Straw Hats are, in fact, dead? Is she the sole survivor and has chosen to defect to a new crew and aid them in their reign of terror?

Despite his family’s statements, Harpin Reginald, who is due to inherit his brother’s estate and become the new governor of Tokken Island, disagrees that the woman seen was really the infamous thief.

“The Straw Hats have been missing for months, but that doesn’t mean they’re dead,” he says. “Moreover, even if they were, why would one of them join a rival crew instead of an ally’s? It seems more likely that it’s an imposter or—excuse the pun—a copy-cat. I would not put it past the Heart Pirates to employ an imitator for the sake of throwing off pursuers and sending the world into an uproar.

“My brother had many enemies, however I doubt the Straw Hats were among them. Her presence makes little sense, and with his abilities, what would Trafalgar Law need a cat burglar for? I believe the young woman is merely an imposter whose presence was designed to send the Marines on a wild goose chase.”

Harpin adds, “However, whether or not the young lady was indeed ‘Cat Thief’ Nami is irrelevant to me. I leave it to the authorities to bring my brother’s killers to justice—my focus is on repairing the damage done to the island, both that caused by the Heart Pirates and Gerald’s gross mismanagement.”

Marine Captains “White Chase” Smoker and “Black Cage” Hina, who were both on the scene and battled the pirates to protect the trapped partygoers, were unavailable for comment, though Navy Headquarters assures the world that they are out hunting the culprits.

“Whether ‘Cat Thief’ Nami has defected to the Heart Pirates or the woman who aided Trafalgar Law is an imposter does not matter,” their formal statement decrees. “She will be caught and stand trial for her crimes of burglary, assault, murder, and piracy. Justice will be served.”

“You know, the biggest surprise in that whole story is that Reginald got the estate instead of the nephew,” came Law’s voice in Nami’s ear, startling her.

“Don’t sneak up on people!” she snapped, hand whipping out to strike him, though he easily dodged.

“But it’s so much fun,” he chuckled.

“You have a twisted idea of ‘fun,’” she growled, cheeks flushing as the stress made her temperature rise further. Part of her knew she couldn’t keep her connection to the Heart Pirates a secret forever, but to see the world speculate on whether she’d switched sides and if Luffy was dead was more painful than she’d imagined.

Her throat tightened as a thought came to her—did the others have access to the news? What would Sanji or Usopp or Robin say if they saw this? Surely they knew her well enough to know she’d never side with another pirate, right?

Taking a deep breath, she told herself to calm down. Of course her nakama wouldn’t believe those lies. Luffy had faith in her.

Her captain had never doubted her loyalty, and he wouldn’t start now.

Calm returned, she gave Law an unimpressed frown. “And seriously, that’s what you’re surprised at? I’m sure the Navy just seized the land and turned it over to Reginald to keep him from telling the world that Harpin had been leaking secrets.”

“Do you really think a man like him would take a bribe?” he asked, eyebrow raised.

“If it’s for the sake of the villagers his brother was willing to frame for terrorism and aiding pirates, then yeah, I do.”

“Hate to interrupt, Boss, but don’t we have an appointment to get to?” Shachi asked, not bothering to hide his amusement at their exchange.

“Yeah. Let’s cash our treasure in, then I think we can go our separate ways.” He tossed Nami a wink. “Hate to delay our Cat Thief’s shopping spree, after all.”

“You are in way too good a mood,” she groused while stomping past him, but she didn’t get far as a long, tattooed arm draped over her shoulder, lanky legs easily keeping pace with her angry strides.

“Cheer up, Nami-ya. Soon you’ll be swimming in cash and clothes,” he said smoothly. He looked much better than he had three days ago—with the fertilizer research done he’d clearly been sleeping better, and he was back to taking regular meals with the crew. The circles under his eyes were still unsettlingly prominent, but he seemed livelier and more alert, which was good considering how they were about to meet with people who regularly did business with pirates. “And personally, I think you look good in my uniform.”

“Of course you would, pervert,” she grumbled under her breath. She didn’t bother trying to shrug off his arm; there was no point, as he always seemed to find some new way to have his hands on her. At least the thick fabric of the jumpsuit dampened his hot, possessive touches.

Either he didn’t hear or simply decided to ignore her as he continued, “If it makes you feel better, you won’t be required to wear it when we go out for dinner tonight. You can wear whatever tiny scraps of clothing you want—just don’t complain when you inevitably get cold.”

“Oh, how generous of you!” she sneered quietly, keeping Uni’s advice in mind but unwilling to stand by and let Law tease her. “Really, it’s so sweet of you to give me permission to choose which of my clothes go on my body!”

Though she refused to look at him, she could feel his disapproving gaze. “Throw all the temper tantrums you want, Nami-ya; I’m not budging on this. It’s for your own safety. Of all of us, you, Bepo, and Ikkaku are the most likely to be targeted by slavers, so I’m making sure they realize that messing with you invokes the wrath of the Surgeon of Death.”

“Then why don’t you just stamp ‘Property of Trafalgar Law’ on our foreheads and be done with it?”

“Keep up your backtalk and I will,” he growled in her ear, leaning in so his hot breath danced across her sensitive skin. “At least for them. You, I’m thinking a collar and leash might be more appropriate, especially if it comes with a muzzle.”

Such a threat should not have made blood rush to her cheeks or her stomach clench, and once again she felt far too hot. “You know, for all Luffy’s flaws, at least he never forced his weird kinks on us,” she sassed, resisting the urge to open up the jumpsuit more so she could fan her flushed chest.

Law scoffed. “That’s because I’m not even sure he knows what sex is. Boa Hancock could throw herself at him wearing nothing but a smile and he wouldn’t even blink.”

“That’s not true,” she insisted. “At the very least, he seemed to appreciate seeing me naked.”

Next to her, the Supernova actually stumbled. “Wait, what? When did he see you naked?”

“Does it matter? Actually, he still owes me money for that.” Numbers adding up in her mind, she nodded to herself. “Add on two years of interest and I’ll be making a tidy profit off him.”

“I’m sorry, you charged him money to see you naked? I thought prostitution wasn’t in your repertoire?”

Craning her neck to glare up at him as she smacked his chest, she snapped, “Watch it, Trafalgar. He and the boys decided to spy on me in the bath, so I charged them 100,000 belli each. If you ask me, I was being nice for such a gross violation of privacy!”

His arm left her shoulder to raise up in surrender. “Ok, that’s fair. Considering what Ikkaku’s done to anyone dumb enough to peek on her, charging them is pretty light. My comment was out of line, and I apologize.”

“Are you sorry enough to let me wear my regular clothes?”

“Hell no, and if you keep trying to wheedle your way out of it, I’m going to make you wear it back on the ship, too.”

By that point, they’d left Grimm’s cramped shopping quarter to arrive at the meeting place—the much more open fields of the warehouse district. Gold eyes scanned the area before leading the crew inside an innocuous grey building that smelled faintly of spoiled vegetables. A few gas lamps allowed just enough light to see the dozen men waiting on the far side of the building, all muscular and rough looking, save one.

“Ah, Captain Law,” the scrawny man in front welcomed nasally. He wore a pinstriped, dark purple suit and silk top hat with a bejeweled buckle, straw-like hair sticking out in haphazard clumps as he gave a yellow-toothed smile. “So good to see you again.”

“Jinzo,” he replied with a curt nod, removing himself from Nami’s side to shake the man’s hand. “Where’s Kimo-ya?”

“Ah, my partner was victim to an unfortunate…accident just a few days ago. No clue whether or not he’ll recover, so I’m here in his stead. Really, it’s for the best; he may be well-versed in the organ trade, but I’m the one who specializes in gold.”

“If you say so,” he replied. He appeared bored, but Nami could see from the way his stance widened slightly that he was prepared for any sudden attacks. He was a smart man, and past black market dealings had taught him to never underestimate a man willing to regularly do business with pirates.

“Speaking of, I heard you amassed quite the haul on Tokken Island, and I see the reports weren’t exaggerated!”

Jerking his head, Law signaled for Jean Bart to open his chest. Even in the dim light, the gold bars gleamed like the sun. Belli signs appeared in Jinzo’s eyes as he eagerly took in the remains of the gold squid statue. After a moment, Jean Bart closed the lid with a snap, bringing the broker’s attention back to the captain.

“You’ve got the amount Kimo-ya and I agreed on?” Law asked.

“Ah, about that—you see, while your wares are certainly impressive, I’m a man of business. Kimo may have had a soft spot for you since you supplied him with so many…fresh goods, but I can’t allow his bias to affect my profits. I’m afraid that with the fees Mr. Giberson will charge me for using his warehouses to store the goods, plus the time and effort I’ll have to go through to fence off the individual pieces, your asking price was a bit high. So, I’ve decided not to give you a belli more than 200 million.”

“Excuse me?” Law snapped at the same Nami exclaimed “What?!” The rest of the Heart Pirates appeared just as outraged, with more than a few hands dropping to their weapons.

“It’s a perfectly fair price!” Jinzo insisted. “I’m even being charitable and including the bribe you’d inevitably have to pay me to keep me from selling you out to the Marines.”

“There’s more than that amount in a single chest,” the Surgeon of Death growled. “Kimo-ya and I agreed on 655 million.”

“I’m under no obligation to honor such a ridiculous price. I have warehouses fees, employees to pay, officials to bribe, and more. 200 million is fair.”

“Yeah? Well I’ve got a crew to pay, provisions to purchase, and a high-tech sub like mine isn’t cheap to maintain—655 million belli was me being generous, and that’s because I had such a good working relationship with your partner.” Gold eyes narrowed dangerously as his grip on Kikoku shifted. “As a businessman, I’m sure you understand that changing the price so drastically tends to sour a deal.”

He scoffed. “From what I heard, this isn’t even your full haul—I’d say I’m the one being cheated. Technically I’m paying 400 million belli, since I’m also giving up the chance to turn you in for your bounty.”

“Are you threatening me?” Law growled, the brim of his hat casting his eyes in menacing shadow.

“Oh no; I’m just saying that you should pick your battles carefully. Now, I have no time to barter like a fishmonger—I have other appointments after you. If you don’t like my offer, go peddle your wares to someone else.”

“That’s a great idea,” Nami chimed in, sauntering up next to Law, eyes narrowed in determination and a Cheshire smile on her lips. She hadn’t originally planned on getting involved, but if there was one thing she hated, it was watching someone try to cheat her and her associates out of their hard-earned money. “We do have other brokers lined up, don’t we, Captain? So, what’s stopping us from turning around right now and selling all this off to them?”

“Nami, what are you doing?” Shachi whispered behind her, but a signal from Law told him to back down.

“My subordinate is right,” Law replied, wrapping a long arm around her waist, squeezing her side gently in a silent show that he understood what she was doing and willing to play along. “We came here first as a favor to Kimo-ya, since he’s always been so good to me. I wanted to keep our working relationship strong, but if you’re taking over and won’t honor his price, we’ll have to take our business elsewhere.”

“You won’t find anyone on this island willing to pay you better,” Jinzo sneered. “I practically own the black market on these isles. Hell, I’ve got enough clout with the Underworld at this point that I could ensure no one this side of the Red Line will so much spit on you if you’re on fire.”

With a nonchalant shrug, he countered, “Then I’ll just head to the New World and open my trade there. If you’ve got so much influence, then my usual customers won’t retaliate when business from their favorite heart stealer suddenly dries up.”

“And your other appointments will have no issue working with a man who would turn a client in to the Marines,” Nami added with a cat-like smile.

Paling, Jinzo’s entire body went tense. Nami didn’t know much about the organ trade, but she’d wager that the type of people who specialized in buying and selling body parts wouldn’t have much problem with recouping their lost profits from the man who drove away their best supplier. Pirates she did know, though, and they definitely wouldn’t stand for government snitches.

“Perhaps…perhaps I could bump my offer up to 400 million,” he stuttered. “As a show of good faith.”

“Mmm, sorry, but that’s just not good enough,” Nami sighed, twirling a strand of hair around her finger. She was in her element—belli and bartering. When money was involved, she barely even noticed the stuffy heat of her jumpsuit, and the tension in her bones practically vanished. For the first time all day, she was calm and in control. “I mean, we went through a lot to get this gold, and you just threw that hard work back in our faces. Months of planning, injured crewmembers, emotional trauma, transportation fees—it all adds up. We won’t part with a single piece of gold for less than 730 million belli.”

“What?!” Jinzo shouted as Law gave her a curious glance.

Smirking, the thief winked at her partner. “Captain Law was giving a generous discount to Mr. Kimo, but as you’ve so astutely pointed out, you and he don’t share such a close relationship. So, your price, Mr. Jinzo, is 730 million.”

“I won’t pay that! Perhaps I could accept 523 million without the bribe, but you’re being simply outrageous! And I’m not haggling with some rookie upstart’s whore!”

“And just for that insult, you’ve upped the price to a cool 750 million,” Law cut in, voice low and dark, sending a shiver down the spine of everyone in the warehouse. His grip on his nodachi had noticeably tightened, and even a man as arrogantly foolish as Jinzo could tell that he was on dangerously thin ice. “That’s my final offer, by the way. Try to talk me down or degrade a valued member of my crew again, and I’ll not only walk away, but I’ll take your heart and a few other major organs for my trouble. Kimo-ya and I got on so well because he respected my abilities and knew not to play games with the Surgeon of Death. So make your choice: belli or body parts?”

Nami could see that while the guards tensed, they looked more ready to run than defend their employer. It wouldn’t surprise her; she doubted Jinzo was paying them enough to risk getting their hearts ripped out, and if they knew anything about Law’s abilities, they’d know even running wouldn’t do them much good.

Seeing he was outgunned and outmaneuvered, the dealer clenched his fists but finally gave a stiff nod. “Fine. Men, hand over the cash.”

Grunting, three men lugged over five large briefcases. Cocking an eyebrow, Law activated his Room, scanning their contents. “You’re 25 million short,” he said, tone belying mild amusement.

“This is all the money I brought for the next three deals I had scheduled for today! Thanks to you, I’m going to have to reschedule so I can get more,” he snapped with a deep scowl. “My next client in particular will not be happy about that, and I won’t hesitate to inform him of exactly whose fault it is,” he sneered, eyes burning holes into Nami’s skull.

“I’m quaking in my boots. Still, since you can’t pay up, we’ll just keep some of the treasure.” Leading Nami over to Ikkaku’s chest, he opened it, the diamond necklaces and gem-encrusted trinkets twinkling in invitation. “Nami-ya, you’ve got a good eye for appraisal—see which of these can be removed to better match Jinzo-ya’s budget.”

Nodding, she carefully studied the contents of the chest, clever brain rapidly crunching numbers before she finally reached in, carefully removing a small, egg-shaped music box, its alabaster surface studded with pinhead-sized sapphires and spiderweb-thin seams of rose gold. Admiring the craftmanship and beauty for a moment, she carefully handed it to Law. “This is easily worth 25 million.”

With a smirk he shoved the music box into his hoodie pocket, snapped the lid of the treasure chest shut, and activated his Room again, switching the chests in his crews arms with the briefcases full of money in the guards’. “Then it seems our business is concluded.” Turning to leave, he flipped Jinzo off over his shoulder. “Bit of advice, Jinzo-ya; don’t try to cheat pirates, especially those of the Heart variety. It’ll get you killed one of these days.”

Eager to escape the off-putting stench and stuffy heat of the warehouse and hateful glare of the underworld broker, Nami didn’t even mind when Law’s hand settled on her lower back, gently but firmly pushing her towards the exit. Though Law had gotten in the last word, it was obvious that Jinzo’s vitriol was focused on the woman who had managed to nearly quadruple what he’d planned to pay with just a few words. It sent a cold shiver down her spine, which would have been a welcome relief if her stomach wasn’t twisting up in anxious knots.

Once outside and making their way down the road, the Dark Doctor grinned proudly down at Nami. “From now on, I’m taking you to all my business meetings. That was a thing of beauty.”

“Damn straight it was!” Ikkaku cheered from behind them, pumping a fist in the air. “Son of a bitch will think twice before trying to screw us again!”

Jean Bart chuckled. “Wish I’d had someone like you on my crew back when I was a captain—could have bought a private island and retired early instead of getting enslaved.”

Nami shrugged but glowed under the praise, mood further improved by a cool breeze fanning across her heated skin. “Oh, it was nothing special. I did all the negotiations on the Sunny, so I’ve had plenty of practice. When Luffy, Usopp, and I traded in our gold from the sky islands, a banker tried to offer us only 100 million belli, but I convinced him to triple the price,” she said with a saucy wink.

“How the hell was Straw Hat not swimming in cash?” Shachi asked, astounded.

She sighed, brow twitching in irritation. “Half the time he’d leave the treasure behind because ‘the villagers needed it more.’ I mean, he was usually right, but it drove me crazy.”

“Well, you don’t have to worry about that with us!” he said with a grin. “With you on our crew, the Heart Pirates won’t even need the One Piece!”

“Well, I wouldn’t go that far,” Law said. “The One Piece isn’t just treasure—it’s the only way to become King of the Pirates. I’m not going to settle for riches when the ultimate prize is out there waiting for me.”

Right, he wants to be Pirate King, too, Nami thought, frown deepening in concern as her muscles tensed. It’s one thing to help a guy to square a debt, but I can’t help him steal Luffy’s dream! “I’m kind of surprised you guys are still on this side of the Red Line, then—aren’t you worried someone else will get to it before you?” she asked cautiously.

“Nah. With Whitebeard dead, the New World’s in absolute shambles—hundreds of pirate crews are going to sail to their deaths while the Emperors fight over territory. I’ll let those underprepared idiots take themselves out, then cross over when the time is right.”

A small, relieved puff of air escaped her lips. With luck, he wouldn’t take that leap until she was back on Weatheria, though she was now nervous about what kind of chaos she’d be sailing Luffy into.

The cooling breeze vanished as they once more entered the sheltered streets of the shopping quarter. Ushering them off to the side so they wouldn’t draw too much attention from curious vendors, Law finally removed his hand from Nami’s back to activate his Room. Quickly and quietly, he teleported a few wads of cash into each crewmember’s pockets. Weird as it felt, Nami had to appreciate that it was far safer than handing out wads of money where any onlooker could see and pick out an easy mark.

“Alright, I suppose this is where we all head off to enjoy the fruits of our labors. Jean Bart, Uni and I will head back to the ship to get everyone else their share and lock up the rest of the cash. As for the rest of you, avoid fighting unless necessary, stick to your groups, and don’t make yourself a target.” With a smirk, he took Ikkaku’s briefcase before glancing down at Nami. “Enjoy your shopping, Nami-ya, but no ditching the uniform.”

“Good thing you won’t be around to stop me,” she quipped. Without the breeze, Nami was once more close to sweating in her jumpsuit, and despite no longer being under Jinzo’s penetrating stare, the anxious knot hadn’t quite managed to untwist in her belly. Her body was still on high alert, her senses sharp in anticipation, which just made every brush of heavy fabric more abrasive. Without thinking, she grabbed the collar of her suit to fan herself, only to stop upon realizing she was inadvertently giving Law a better view of her cleavage.

“Good thing Ikkaku, Bepo, and Shachi are under strict orders to make sure you behave yourself,” he shot back, tone laced with amusement as he eyed the flushed mounds of flesh, causing Nami to heat up further with embarrassment.

She cursed under her breath. Not only had she basically flashed Law—which he’d probably assumed was her flirting—but he’d successfully backed her into a corner. If it were just one of them, she might have been able to talk her way into a change of clothes, but with all three she knew she was shit out of luck. One Heart Pirate could be reasoned with, but when they were in a group, the captain’s word was law.

Seeing the despairing expression on her face, Ikkaku wrapped her arm around the younger woman’s shoulders, inadvertently rubbing the uncomfortable fabric against her scars. “Cheer up, Nami—Boss is just worried that two stunning pieces of ass like us will captivate the whole island with our insanely good looks. He doesn’t want anyone carrying away his two hottest subordinates.”

The redhead had to chuckle a bit at that, even if her stomach twisted further at being so earnestly referred to as “Law’s subordinate.” It was unsettling how everyone acted as if this was more than just a temporary alliance.

“I’m happy to carry your bags, Nami,” Shachi offered with a boyish grin, hoping to raise the navigator’s spirits.

Law frowned. “Your cast just came off; don’t over-exert yourself.”

“I’ll be fine, Boss! How heavy can clothes be?”

“Well, if you insist,” Nami cooed sweetly, fluttering her eyelashes. With luck, the time she took to try on clothes would be enough to cool her down, and she would never say no to someone else carrying her things. “Thank you, Shachi-kun.”

His cheeks turned as red as his hair and he rubbed the back of his head bashfully. “A-anytime, Nami.”

Glancing over at Bepo, Law sighed. “Anything goes wrong, find me immediately. Marines, enemy pirates, angry mobs with pitchforks, whatever. And don’t let Nami-ya out of your sights. I’m counting on you.”

“Aye-aye, Captain!” the trio shouted as Nami rolled her eyes.

They’re like a bunch of eager puppies, she thought as they led her away, eagerly chattering about which store they should hit first.

Feeling an intense stare, she turned her head slightly to see Law watching her go, a satisfied smirk creeping to his lips. Realization hit her quickly and her entire body tensed up—he was staring at the Jolly Roger on her back.

His emblem. His trademark. His property.

It was the same way Arlong would stare at her, only hungrier.

Unnoticed by her companions, her muscles remained tense even as they walked away, heart pounding so loud she nearly didn’t hear Ikkaku when she asked, “So, where to first?”

“How about the bookstore?” Bepo offered, poking his long claws together.

“Hey, it should be Nami’s decision!” Shachi scolded, to which the bear offered a weak apology.

“The bookstore’s fine,” she choked out, willing her racing heart to calm down. There was no need to panic—Law was probably just staring at her like that because he was a weird pervert who got turned on by people in baggy clothes. Somehow, his anti-nudity fetish was a lot more comfortable than the idea that he saw her the way the Fishman Pirates had—a tool to be used and kept at any cost.

“Books it is,” Ikkaku declared, looping their arms together and dragging them down the winding roads. Luckily, the further they got from the intense captain, the easier it became to breathe, her heartbeat nearly back to normal by the time they entered the bookshop.

The smell of paper, ink, and leather binding finished the job, as it reminded Nami of the library on the Thousand Sunny, and even more of Robin. Looking around, she had to grin at the tall shelves of books that made the store a veritable maze. Robin and Chopper would spend hours in a place like this, browsing and picking out an enormous stack of medical tomes, novels, historic texts, and more to fill the ship’s library with. The memory brought a smile to her face as her anxiety receded like an ocean wave, and the cool, dry air against her skin allowed Nami to regain her enthusiasm for shopping.

“If anyone needs me, I’ll be over by the ‘How To’ manuals and laughing,” Ikkaku called before disappearing into the stacks.

Shachi shook his head, but there was a hint of an affectionate smile at the corner of his lips. “Someone’s really got to tell her one of these days that those books are supposed to be serious instructions, not comedy.”

“But not you?” Nami joked.

“Not a chance. I’m going to grab the latest issue of Sora, Warrior of the Sea, then check out the fashion magazines. The other day Penguin said my hat’s the ugliest thing in existence, so by the end of today I wanna find something so ridiculous he’ll beg me to change back.”

Down to two, Bepo gave a shy smile. “Want to check out the horticulture section with me?”

It was almost physically painful to deny any request for the bear, but there was something she wanted to grab first, and she didn’t need him finding out her guilty pleasure and potentially spilling it to his captain—that jerk did not need any more ammo to use against her. Patting his arm, Nami replied, “I’ll meet you there later—I realized during the long, boring trip from Knox that I was in desperate need of good literature, and no offense, but your ship’s library just doesn’t have anything to my taste.”

“Not even my navigational books?” he asked sadly.

“Oh, those were fine, but I mean reading for pleasure. You know, a good, exciting novel. Without Luffy around, I’m actually starting to miss the thrill of adventure.”

The bear scratched his snout. “Huh. Personally, I like that Law doesn’t take unnecessary risks, but I guess everyone’s different. I can wait while you pick out your books.”

Waving her hand nervously, she insisted, “Oh, no, it’s ok! You start checking out the books on plants and I’ll join you in a bit!”

“But Law told me not to let you out of my sight.”

Exasperated, she rolled her eyes. “I know, but I’m not going to run off or ditch the uniform—knowing my luck, I’d run into him the second I walked out of the store.”

Cocking his head in thought, Bepo finally nodded. “Ok, but you’d better keep your word—if you disappear, Law’ll be really mad at me,” he said, ears drooping and grey clouds forming over his head at the mere thought.

“I promise I’d never intentionally do anything that would get you in trouble,” she said earnestly, provoking a happy grin from the massive Mink.

“Ok! Just don’t take too long!”

Sighing in relief as Bepo jogged off to the gardening section, the coast was finally clear for Nami to creep to the back corner of the store where she’d spotted her prize.

Romance and Erotic Fiction.

Though most assumed she only read cartography books, fashion magazines, and almanacs, in truth these were her guilty pleasure. Running her fingers down the spines of the paperbacks—many sporting a half-dressed woman wrapped in the passionate embrace of a shirtless, unnaturally chiseled man on the cover—she wracked her brain for the list of novels she’d read and which ones she’d been looking for. Her tastes were fairly specific; the setting had to be interesting, the sexual tension palpable, and the leading lady had to be smart and sassy while the men were sensual and mysterious.

“Aha!” she squealed, eagerly plucking the book she’d been searching for from its place on the shelf: To Catch a Turtle Dove. It was about a beautiful and resourceful thief who decided to rob the royal palace but was caught by the dark and dangerous ruler. She’d bought a copy back in Saboady, the first few chapters having captivated her when she’d read them in the store, and she wasn’t going to wait nearly two years to find out what happened. The thief had just made it to the royal ball, and if the intense eye contact she’d made with the lord from across the room was anything to go by, it was worth buying a second copy.

“What are you doing back here?” a voice from behind asked, making her nearly leap out of her skin.

“Damn it, Ikkaku, don’t scare me like that!” she growled as her heart started palpitating again. What was with Heart Pirates and sneaking up on her, anyway? Did Law order them to do it to mess with her, or was it an unconscious habit they’d picked up from their captain?

The older woman looked at the erotic fiction novels around them, raising a dark eyebrow. “Didn’t think you were into this kind of stuff, Nami,” she teased.

A faint blush warmed her pale cheeks, though the teasing tone did calm her down. Ikkaku really was like Robin in the strangest ways. “Shut up,” she grumbled. “A girl’s got needs, right?”

“Hey, not judging—if anything, it explains how you’re able to hold your own against the captain. Most girls swoon at just a few of his lines, but you’ve probably seen them all before, huh?” she said with a wink.

Nami giggled, glad Ikkaku was laughing with her, not at her. “Something like that. Besides, why bother with real men and all their flaws when you can get the same result from a good book?”

“If all it takes is words on a page to get you off, you’re even more repressed than I thought,” Ikkaku sniggered, easily blocking Nami’s indignant punch. “And trust me, men may be idiots, but a good, hard fuck is worth more than any book.”

“I’ll take your word for it,” she scoffed, turning around to pick out a few more paperbacks.

Casually browsing the titles beside her, Ikkaku said, “You know, it’s pretty obvious that the captain’s into you—”

“Nope!” Nami cut her off, cheeks going crimson. “Don’t even suggest it! Ours is a purely business relationship and there are so many ways getting physical with him could go wrong. I’ve got ten months left with you guys, and I’m not putting myself in an awkward position.”

“Make all the excuses you want, but I know you’re just mad that he’s beating you at your own game.”

“Not true.”

“Please, Bepo told me how you managed to give Law that sunburn, and the hickey you came back from the gala with says he paid you back with interest. What’s awkward is watching you act like such a tsundere about it.”

“I’m not—like you said, I’m just a little pent up. A few steamy novels and it’ll be out of my system, without the messy consequences that come with sleeping with your captain.”

“If you’re not going to indulge, at least consider investing in a decent vibrator,” she sniggered. “Because I can tell you, when Law wants something—or someone—he does whatever it takes to get it. If you think he’s a massive tease now, it’s only going to get worse as time goes on, and I’ve seen stronger pirates than you fall at his feet. If anything, those books’ll just make you hornier.”

“You know what, Ikkaku—” Nami started, annoyance and embarrassment making her temper flare.

“Miss Nami, when you’re done, can I get your opinion, please?” Bepo asked shyly, fuzzy white head poking around the corner.

Reigning in her emotions while quickly hiding her books behind her back, she flashed him a smile. “Sure thing, Bepo! Just give me a minute!”

He returned the smile, disappearing back into the store, surprisingly quiet for a creature his size.

With a grin, Ikkaku shook her head and took the naughty paperbacks from Nami’s hands. “Here—I’ll grab these for you while you help our favorite crewmate. I’m sure you don’t want him asking awkward questions about what you’re reading, right?”

Coughing into her fist, Nami looked away bashfully. “Thanks.”

“We’ll finish this discussion later. I saw a flyer for Ladies’ Night at one of the local bars tomorrow. Wanna join me?”

“Sounds fun, but only if you promise to go five consecutive minutes without talking about your boss while we’re there. I don’t want our whole friendship to be based around your matchmaking schemes.”

“And here I thought teasing you was fair payment for letting you steal my clothes,” she laughed, bumping their hips together. “Remember you owe me an outfit, by the way.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Nami laughed before taking off to find Bepo. Despite her teasing, Ikkaku was a good friend. She just really needed to lay off the insinuations that she and Law needed to get it on.

XXX

Three hours and eight clothing stores later, Nami was completely ready to ditch the boiler suit. The boutiques hadn’t been as pleasantly cool as the bookshop even when she stripped down to try on new outfits, and every time she had to put back on that hot, confining garment had felt like torture. Parts had even started becoming damp with sweat, furthering her discomfort. The heat was exhausting, too, yet she still felt anxious, trapped energy thrumming under her skin like she’d drank too much coffee.

The uniform was ruining her shopping experience in other ways, too. Thanks to its completely unflattering silhouette and drastic lack of sex appeal, flirting her way to better discounts was harder than usual. Sure, her cleavage and fluttering eyelashes had gotten her down to 50% off in the shoe store, but the clerk at the lingerie boutique had barely given her 30%! Plus, every time she caught a glance at herself in a mirror, dressed head-to-toe like a Heart Pirate, Jolly Roger grinning at her from her left breast pocket, she felt her scar throb. No matter how many cute outfits she tried on, all she could see was that damn insignia mocking her, declaring she was once more some sick pirate’s property.

“I hate this thing so much,” she groaned, irritably tugging the zipper down to her sternum, hoping to vent just a little more of the heat trapped beneath the thick canvas. “Please, can’t I take it off now?”

“Sorry, hun, but it’s for your own safety,” Ikkaku replied with a frown. She couldn’t understand why Nami was complaining so much; yeah, it wasn’t the sexiest ensemble, but it kept Grimm’s damp chill and the scumbags at bay. “Just hold on a bit longer, then we’ll head back to the ship and you can change out of it.”

The thought of going back to the ship made her whine pathetically. The submarine would be even hotter—she was wholly starting to sympathize with Bepo. Hell, how was he not dying in his own jumpsuit? He had fur, shouldn’t he be suffering just as much?

“Cheer up, Nami!” Shachi said from behind the mountain of boxes he was carrying. His healed arm was certainly being put to the test, but Nami couldn’t feel too guilty—after all, he’d offered. “I think you look great in the uniform!”

“Yeah,” Bepo added with a smile. He had also been roped into carrying the girls’ purchases, the dozens of shopping bags looped around his arms sticking out like colorful wings. “You really look like one of us.”

She froze in her tracks as her heart stopped. “…excuse me?”

“You look like an official member of the Heart Pirates,” he said, cocking his head in confusion at her tone. Surely, that was a nice compliment, right?

“Soon enough you’ll be sporting a tattoo!” Ikkaku teased, not noticing how pale Nami’d become due to the dark shadows cast by the buildings.

The redhead’s blood went cold. She knew they were kidding. She prayed they were kidding. Her hand unconsciously gripped her shoulder, clutching at the phantom tattoo. The mark she still had nightmares about.

“Hey, that’s a great idea!” Shachi exclaimed, certain he’d found the solution to keep both the pretty navigator and their captain happy. If not, hopefully it would make her appreciate the jumpsuit a bit more. “If you got a tattoo, maybe Law’ll ease up on the dress code. We’ve all got one—it’s how we can show we’re Heart Pirates even out of uniform.”

“I don’t,” Bepo pointed out.

“That’s because you can’t tattoo fur, idiot!”

“Sorry.”

Not wanting to deal with an argument between the two males, Ikkaku cut in, “Sounds good to me. How about it, Nami? I happen to know an artist who’ll give you a great discount,” she added with a wink.

“Of course she wants one! The real question is; where should she get it?” Shachi joked. “Law’s got it on his back, and Penguin’s is on his shin. Don’t ask where mine is—at least, not without buying me dinner, first!”

“Tramp stamp. You’re definitely getting a Heart Pirate tramp stamp,” Ikkaku laughed, deviously rubbing her hands together. “I’ve already got the design sketched out!”

Though it was said in jest, all Nami could hear was cruel cackling as she was overwhelmed by the memory of being helpless and in pain, branded by a sick and possessive monster.

“Hold still, human!” Chew sneered as the needle pierced her skin.

“Stop it! It hurts!” Nami screamed, her tiny fingers desperately clawing at the table Kuroobi pinned her down on. His enormous hands easily spanned her entire back, but she refused to just lay there and let them brand her. Tears rained from her large, childish eyes, lip bleeding from the slap Chew had given her earlier.

“Smek. Who cares if it hurts? Quit wiggling around so I don’t mess up.” The clammy, webbed hand on her arm tightened, cutting off the blood flow and threatening to crack the fragile bone beneath as he continued to ink the design.

“Shahahahaha! You should be honored, Nami! You’re the only human in the world to be graced with my mark,” Arlong laughed from his chair, watching her futile struggles like a shark would an injured baby seal. “Consider it your official welcome to the Fishman Pirates!”

“I don’t want it!” she screamed as another wave of agony wracked her tiny body. In all of her ten years she’d never felt such pain, and she was helpless to do anything about it. “Make it stop!”

Kuroobi’s hands pressed down harder against her back, forcing the air from her lungs. “We don’t take orders from worthless humans,” he sneered, blue-tinged face twisting in a sneer.

“It’s for your own good, girl,” Arlong said with a twisted smile. “Someone with your raw talent is a valuable commodity. Pirates the world over are gonna want you—I’m just making sure they know to keep their hands off.” Getting up, he strolled over to the pinned girl with the casual grace of a barracuda in the water. Course as sandpaper, the tip of his finger stroked across her tear-stained cheek. “I’m keeping you safe—after all, you’re part of my crew.”

“Nami, are you ok?”

Pulled from the horrible memory, the navigator stepped away from her companions, russet eyes wide with fear. “You’re not tattooing me,” she gasped. It felt like Kuroobi’s hand were still crushing her chest, and her nails dug into her left shoulder so hard they threatened to dig through the off-white canvas.

“Hey, it’s just a—”

“I’m not letting you fuckers brand me like cattle!” she shouted, fear replaced by fury as she pulled out her Clima-Tact, brandishing it as threateningly as she could despite her shaking arms. Nami was a wild animal backed into a corner, desperately showing her claws in hopes of scaring off her hunters.

The Heart Pirate trio froze, jaws dropping in shock. “Whoa, Nami, that’s not—”

“Quit acting like I’m one of you! Quit acting like I’ve betrayed Luffy! I’m a Straw Hat, not a Heart Pirate!”

“Hey, no one’s saying you betrayed anybody,” Ikkaku assured, hands raised in hopes of showing she was no threat to the young navigator. “We’re just trying to make you feel welcome.”

“I don’t want your welcome!” she shrieked. Cold sweat ran down her back, her heart was racing, and her body was on fire. She felt trapped, both by the people across from her and by the stifling jumpsuit. “I don’t want your fucking tattoo, or your uniform, or—”

“The uniform’s to keep you safe!” Shachi insisted, silently motioning for Bepo to sneak around and subdue her before she hurt herself. He took in her flushed cheeks, ragged breathing and glazed eyes, and his tone softened with concern. “Look, why don’t we head back to the ship? You don’t look so great, and I’m sure if you talk it out with the captain—”

In her panicked brain, she didn’t register that they meant Law, not Arlong. “I’m not going back! I’m not that monster’s property!” she screamed as she blasted a heavy gust of wind from her staff, knocking the trio back hard into a nearby fruit stand. The tower of clothing and shoe boxes collapsed, falling on top of them, and vendors nearby shouted as their carts were upended.

Using the chaos to her advantage, Nami dashed off, ignoring the worried cries of the Heart Pirates behind her.

[authenticaussie]

What do you think the difference would be in a TMNT/OP fic with different collections of turtles?

oooooooo okay so I should be getting ready for class tomorrow but you have 100% captured me I’m so invested in this

mainly I know 2003, 2012, and Rise - well, at least, they’re my favourites and have the most distinct characterisation tbh bc they’re long-running series - SO I’ll do those guys :DD

THIS GOT LONG (because of course it did, I’ve never made a short post in my LIFE) SO FIRST: 

the main difference in fic would be tone!!!!!!!! The turtles are all really affected by the shows they come from so there’d be big differences in how they react to the new situation. Combining OP and 2018, they’re both such loud and bright shows that writing them sad would be kinda….disatisfactory to a reader. 2012 is the one where you could get kinda dark, and go down the genetic experiment and “oh wow these kids need a therapist” and Luffy being >:T wtf why are your lives so Fucked Up route, and 2003 would be hilariously awkward because they’re technically all in the same age range but they act so different wheezes

Second!!! Fun character analysis and Shenanigans under the readmore. 

2003

Probably the most responsible on this list, they’re like??? tbh, barely teenagers?? Or at the very least, 18 or 19, and they can be air-heads but 2003 goes feet-first into the whole plot and character and Everything Happens. I mean, literally in season one there’s this whole subplot about how you define monsters and genetic testing and Wild shit like that so they feel Way more adult than the Strawhats get at times. Even though One Piece covers some dark topics it….the characters - the strawhats, in particular, is what I mean - don’t feel like adults the same way the 2003 turtles do. 2003 also doesn’t feel as dark as 2012 gets sometimes, but I feel 2012 is also because they seem really young, and in 2003 at least they get to process their trauma. 2012…..kinda beats them up a lot akhsdg pft.

Sticking them with the Strawhats would be !! Honestly really funny? I feel Mikey would get along with them really well - in every iteration he’s very good at going with the flow, and hey, pirates? and they’re nice? and cool powers? - he’d have the time of his life. Donnie would try and figure out What Was Going On (as the resident “please fix this in case it’s dangerous” guy, that’s probably what his role would Often be) but I can see him being easily distracted by Franky and the whole devil fruits thing. GOD him and Franky is a thought and a half omfg. The level of tech in One Piece is so different when compared to the modern world, and it operates on rules but like, rules that are just ever so slightly different. 

Raph would be in debt Immediately. Mainly bc Nami’s manipulative like that but also because he’s just………..Like That. He’d be rude and insulting and if the strawhats were helping them out he’d be the team’s voice of reason. Or, distrust, I suppose. The one who hangs back, who’s prickly, who’s the last to offer his trust because his family needs him to be uncompromised, just in case. I think he and Zoro would clash for a bit, not like, in words but just in gestures, until the crew + turtles had been through their adventures, and gotten to the end of Whatever fic was being written, and then they’d be friends. Not best buds but like, healthy respect for each other. 

Leo……….absolutely does Not understand why Luffy is leader. It’s like making Mikey the boss; it doesn’t make sense to him, because Luffy is too trusting and he’s strong but strength doesn’t make a good leader, and in 2003 Leo’s kind of a pushover so he’d stay on the sidelines and watch with Raph. But, as everyone knows, Luffy’s magnetism is Pretty Hard To Deny, and the crew’s respect for him does a lot to show to Leo that he may be missing something but that he doesn’t have to understand. 

2012

I always……..feel so bad for TMNT2012 //weeps They’re just kids and they get put through so much like wow I’m only at season two but from spoilers there’s like?? their dad keeps DYING and being bought back to life???/ THAT’S GOTTA FUCK YOU UP!!! Plus all of them have all these different insecurities and they’re kinda mean to each other (Raph….has only given a proper apology for being a dick once so far, and I’m like. mid-way through season two. I’m sorry if this makes me mikey kin @@zali but pLEASE I cannot stand this LET THEM BE NICE TO EACH OTHER ;A; Like they’re still obviously a family but gosh they’re– so prickly)

Honestly depending on how the Strawhats meet them, like holy shit :o they might be Enemies. In 2003 I feel like they’ve been through enough to try and de-escalate a situation first, but 2012 are so Paranoid that unless they had April with them they’d be like WELP this is another mind-control alternate dimension thing, time to ninja vanish. And sure, after they ended up on whatever quest they needed to go on, Luffy would be fascinated by them (2012 definitely pushes the limits of what you can Actually do, in terms of hiding and shit, but I think that makes it fun !!) but I feel the turtles would be pretty paranoid at first. Mikey & Donnie would be the first two to be dragged out of their shells (snickers) because Donnie would be super curious (and also…probably kinda aggravated and confused) about how the one piece world rules work, and Mikey because…friends!! They already have a reindeer mutant on the crew, they’re obviously cool with mutants :D

akhsdg okay I mention that 2003 would hang back and assess Luffy’s leadership still but like 2012 would be such a dick. He never seems to learn the lesson that people have different strengths and different ways of doing things >:T and watching Luffy lead would drive him crazy. I bet he’d try and make plans and be all structured and in control and Luffy would wreck things and/or the strawhats would be like “lol no lmao, you’re not the captain”. Even if he did have a good plan, like….the Strawhats rarely follow plans if Luffy says they’re doing something different snickers. I feel a major part of this could just a nice subplot line of Leo learning to Chill and also like………give the 2012 a fun adventure I’m begging you sobs. Do a Long Long Island filler arc or smth, where it’s dumb and silly and barely dangerous because they’re all competent af. 

Also: Mikey constantly trying to find a devil fruit because “dudes, it’s probably not gonna apply when we go back home and think about how SICK superpowers would be!!!!!!!!”

He does not get one, to his disappointment. 

2018

These guys are IDIOTS and would fit in with Luffy’s brand of chaos p e r f e c t l y 

Okay so yeeeeah I’m probably biased because I think Rise may be my favourite (the family dynamics!! the character designs!! the animation!!! the stupid jokes!!! the sudden flashes of deeper plot!!!!!!!!) BUT. No-one can argue with me that Rise turtles are chaotic as fuck and they’d have the time of their LIVES with Luffy’s crew. Raph would fall in love with Chopper (Chopper would be terrified of him, continuing the terribly sad trend of Raph being Bad With Animals), Donnie would go wild glitter-eyed over the devil fruits and technology and immediately try and do a million mad scientist experiments (and look. SMILES are fucked up. But this boii would totally try and make one/figure out how they worked). He’s….a mad genius and maybe a little bit evil. 

Leo would either drive Sanji crazy or be INSTANTLY adopted and taught how to be “cool”, but I can also see Sanji and Zoro lowkey fighting over him SNICKERS. Because Leo has a sword so he’s obviously Zoro’s, but he’s suave and likes fashion so he MUST be Sanji’s, and it’s not an argument persay, until Leo says he thinks both of them are cool and then it’s a battle to the death. 

(The end of leo’s sentence was “not as cool as me tho ;P” only they didn’t notice that bit.)

April would absolutely fall in love with Robin. And also Nami?? But I feel mainly Robin like Oh Man Robin is so cool and both of them are hypercompetent??? April’s like teach me how to be a badass assassin and Robin smiles and laughs and absolutely does. 

Mikey’s so loud that he almost terrifies Usopp, and terrifying Usopp is kinda a no-no in Luffy’s book, but he likes these guys and Mikey’s just excited to have an artist friend and so both of them bounce around the ship like ping pong balls. 

There is………yeah. A lot of paint covering the Sunny after they’re through. I can’t decide if Franky would cry or laugh but I know one (1) single drop of paint got on Nami’s tangerines and she Banished them. Rise turtles probably have a really good time and the crew figures out they’re basically children really quick and make sure nothing bad happens to them. Leo promises to try and get better at portal-making so they can come visit New York sometime, and everyone is like “what the fuck is new york??” at the same time as Donnie says HEY WAIT, I THINK WE’RE ON AN ALTERNATE DIMENSION and they get teleported home :DD

THANKS FOR LETTING ME SPILL ALL MY TURTLE FEELINGS EVERYWHERE

[neverwatchedonepiece]

648-649: "Making a Sortie! The Legendary Hero Usoland!" and "The Fierce Battle Coming to the End! Lucy vs Chinjao!"

*looks into the camera like in The Office*

The fight between Luffy and Don Chinjao is finally over! I think after what happened, Luffy might have found a new friend. Law also made a stressful phone call to The Krusty Krab Sunny and ordered delivery of one ship to Green Bit.

Zoro and Franky have teamed up with Sol at Resistance HQ in Flower Field, and if Usopp keeps perpetuating his fantastic bullshit, the entire Strawhat crew will be elevated to God status in the Tontatta tribe.

Slightly worried about Law and the Strawhats stuck on Sunny but I’m seventy percent certain they will pull through and won’t be captured by any Donquixote family affiliates. (The thirty percent left over remains a huge, nagging doubt.)

Luffy’s Tough Love Fight Therapy

The Colosseum showdown between Luffy and Don Chinjao picked up at the start of episode 649.

The action was fast and furious. Luffy pulled out all his quick moves: jet pistol, jet gatling, jet stamp gatling. All defended against by Chinjao. The crowd went wild. It was one of the greatest matches the Colosseum had ever seen! Some cheered for Lucy. Others cheered for Chinjao. The atmosphere was electric.

“You’re quite a fighter,” Don Chinjao said.

“Yeah, you’re strong too, as I thought,” Luffy answered. You know. Being honest as he is.

Don Chinjao totally overreacted. “WHAT U SAY? STRONG? U TRYIN TO INSULT MEH??”

Luffy was, quite rightly, bewildered. “Wtf, all I said was that you’re strong?”

Apparently, this was a grave insult to Don Chinjao. A huge kick in the ego. Chinjao had been much stronger before.

“I’m no better than a wolf without its fangs now. A skin-headed man without his drill. A brat like you can’t understand how miserable I feel living my life like this. I’m frustrated, disappointed and sad. But you can never understand.”

I laughed when Luffy yelled, “How can I understand? You keep messing with me without explaining anything!” (He’s just saying what we were all thinking, right?)

“You really want to know why I’ve become like this?”

“No, I’m not that interested.” (Lmao! We meet again, harsh Luffy.)

“Well, I’ll tell you before you die, since you insist.” 

Don Chinjao is one of those old dudes that is TELLING you that long and rambling story even though you have showed zero interest and have been glancing at your watch for the past half hour.

Suddenly, Luffy the Fight Therapist was unwilling and open for business.

According to Chinjao, Garp punched his head in thirty years ago. Literally. As in Don Chinjao once looked like Dan Akroyd from 90s sci-fi comedy, Coneheads. 

That was until his resplendent, pointy napper met Garp’s fist.

The whole flashback was hilariously weird. Turns out Chinjao’s drill-like bonce was the only means to access his remote family treasure vault under an ice sheet. Once Garp took away the key, Chinjao fell into a deep depression. Heartbroken, he retired from piracy, a lifeless shell, just idling away time.

That was kind of sad. I felt for Chinjao then. He’s like the model of the old, proud working man who suffers a physical injury, can no longer work and slips into anger and depression. Since Chinjao knows and values nothing but strength, wealth and power, he cannot and will not see another way forward. Unlike Luffy, Don Chinjao got his ass beat and never found the strength to crawl out of the gutter and retrain.

Instead, he decided to lay the blame for his misfortune squarely at Luffy’s feet.

Luffy, naturally, was outraged. “Wtf are you talking about? Grandpa and I are different people. Look, mate. I’m busy. I’m gonna win Ace’s fruit at any cost and become the Pirate King. I have no time to be your therapist.”

Then Chinjao made two Big Mistakes.

Wow, Chinjao has Really Specific Taste

Mistake #1?

Chinjao laughed off Luffy’s chances at becoming Pirate King. The reason was typical crotchety old man talk: “the media lionised you worst generation squirts and it emboldened you. But none of you are strong enough to sail across the sea *we* fought on. After Whitebeard’s death, I ain’t expecting much. The only guy who looks good is Blackbeard Teach.”

At the mere mention of Teach, Luffy’s eyes became two circles.

“If I had to pick one, it’s him. But anyway, if you’re only good enough to compete against me, just give up!”

Oh, Chinjao, I thought. Ohhhhhhhh, you just goofed. You goofed big time. You do not mention Teach in a positive light within Luffy’s earshot. You just do not. Teach was the asshole who captured Ace and handed him to the Marines. He shares Public Enemy Number One status with Akainu. Tell Luffy you believe Teach will become Pirate King and your fate is sealed.

Mistake #2?

Chinjao’s fighting style is kinda lame. People who spin during fights in shounen anime are always fodder (the one that sticks out is that spinning top guy in the HxH Heaven’s Arena arc.) This was not his mistake. It’s just a side thought.

The Teach comment pushed Luffy’s buttons. But what Chinjao said next was even worse.

“You’re not too bad but if a guy like Rayleigh chose a brat at this level as the flag bearer for this generation, he’s not as smart as he used to be. The Marines were smart when they squelched the most evil one of the lot: Ace. That man had demon’s blood in his veins. Do you think you can beat the Marine admirals, the Yonkou and surpass Roger? That’s impossible!”

Demon’s blood? Most evil one of the lot?

*cue Kill Bill red-mist music*

“Stop whining over one punch!” Luffy yelled, as he wound up a Thor Elephant Gun attack. “I can’t count how many times I got punched by Grandpa!”

When the attack connected and that spike popped back out of Chinjao’s head, I laughed like a drain. Luffy hit Chinjao so hard, he turned the clock back thirty years.

I’m sure Chinjao will be ecstatic. Take the L with good grace, mate. Your conehead is back! Go and wreak havoc on the high seas again. Recoup that treasure. The world is your oyster!

Up on the balcony, Bartolomeo still has not revealed his connection with Luffy. Cavendish is still throwing a strop. Bellamy is lurking in the shadows, clearly in two minds about his new assassination mission. And Burgess, thanks to Cavendish and his big mouth, knows that Luffy is Lucy.

Thanks, Cavendish.

(And Burgess really does walk around chortling and flexing all the time. He’s like an evil All Might.)

Thus the Legendary Heroes of Green Bit were Born

This cast reunion based on Usopp’s total bullshit was so much fun.

I loved Usopp and Robin’s expressions when the Tontatta took them to their airport. They were starry-eyed. And so they should’ve been. It was a miniature version of a proper, fully-equipped modern airport. I wouldn’t be surprised if the place had Duty Free, passport control and Starbucks concessions.

But it was not a holiday destination Usopp and Robin were flying out to. The entire airport had been overtaken by a military operation. Cub, the yellow bee squad leader, and Bian, the pink bee squad leader, reported for duty. Usopp picked up the bee planes and kept saying, “I wanna show this to Luffy.” (They are such good pals, it warms my heart.)

Unfortunately, Usopp and Robin were too big to travel by bee plane, so they had to take the local number 20 bus to Dressrosa. The buses were cute, vulpix-like foxes with huge, fluffy tails you can sink right into for a comfortable ride.

While they made their way through the tunnel, Master Roshi - the pervy little Tontatta chief - emerged from Robin’s cleavage. He bore dire warnings. “I should tell you because you will risk your lives for our cause.”

Usopp was thinking, “I ain’t gonna die for you but go on...”

“Doflamingo has been causing our tribe a lot of pain recently, but our connection with him goes way back before the last decade. Nine hundred years ago!”

Then the narrator interrupted and I was like, “So you’re just going to leave it there when I was about to get Doflamingo family history? I am not at all mad about this. No, sir. Not one bit.”

The action cut to Flower Field, where Franky and Sol descended a secret stairwell. Said stairwell led to the Resistance Army HQ! Some soldiers ran up to Sol and addressed him as “Captain”, so Sol is a Big Deal in the Resistance.

Franky was like, “Why are all these small people swarming me?”

Sol explained. The Tontatta people were called fairies in town, how they moved faster than the human eye could detect and how they were immensely strong. Franky put two and two together and realised one of them stole Zoro’s sword!

And guess who reached Flower Field before Franky? Before any of the other Strawhats!

That’s right. It’s our boy Zoro. (So proud he learned to follow directions.)

Zoro, hilariously, had made himself at home and was watching Luffy vs Chinjao on the big screen TV. He was absolutely fuming. Why hadn’t Luffy told him there was a fighting competition? THE BETRAYAL. Will he get over it? Probably.

He must’ve been distracted by the fight, as he completely forgot 

Then some intelligence scouts ran up. They had a report for Sol. “We already know what our enemies and Sugar are doing!” (Sugar? Who dat?) “And with the battle close at hand, some legendary heroes have appeared at Tontatta: Usoland and Robiland. They have brought with them Luffyland, Zoroland, Namiland, Sanland, Chopperland, Fraland and Boneland.”

Franky and Zoro exchanged a Look. They knew instantly Usopp was on the bullshit wagon again.

“Um, I think I’m Zoroland,” Zoro said. (Lmao, better get into character quick.)

“And I’m Fraland. Nice to meet you!” Franky added.

It was round about then that Zoro remembered that Nami, Chopper and Brook were in serious trouble back on Sunny. He now wants to skip the battle (he doesn’t yet know about) and rescue the other Strawhats.

I wonder how this will go? Wicka did say she would let Zoro go back to Sunny once he’d taken her back to Resistance HQ. But Leo and the others back on Green Bit were suspicious of Robin and Usopp escaping. Will they let Zoro go or will he have to fight the battle first? Hmmm... I’m fifty/fifty about this.

God damn it, Caesar

*curb your enthusiasm music kicks in*

Meanwhile, back on Green Bit, Law was under heavy bombardment. Fujitora took a step back in this episode and Doflamingo stole the limelight. The cool music from Enies Lobby (as I call it in my head. I have no idea what the real title is) played as Doflamingo pursued Law. 

As Doflamingo was about to land a finishing blow, Caesar shrieked, “OI, JOKER! Before you kill Law, I need you to take something back for me. Law took my heart and I don’t know what he’s gonna do with it!”

Doflamingo looked round like, “Wtf... are you talking about?” And while he was distracted, Law shambled his way out of trouble.

Doflamingo was furious. FFS, CAESAR. I bet he wanted to say that but couldn’t. Gotta keep your cash cow scientist happy..

Please send help. Our art teacher has locked us in class.

Unfortunately, Law didn’t have time for a breather. He had an urgent phone call to make.

While Nami, Chopper and Brook were brought up to speed on the Humans Turning Into Toys situation by Giolla, the ship’s DDM rang. Chopper hilariously ignored Giolla and answered the call (she was maaaaad).

It was Law. He said, “Is that Nami-san?”

To my disappointment, Chopper did not answer, “No, this is Patrick.”

“I don’t care what’s going on over there,” Law said. “Listen carefully. I need you to sail Sunny to Green Bit right now. I wanna leave Caesar with you guys. No time to explain. Bye!”

Okay, so I added in the “bye” part. Law abruptly hung up.

I like how he has faith that Nami, Chopper and Brook will be able to handle the situation, but their weapons have been rendered usless by Giolla’s Art Art Fruit power. I have no idea how they’re going to get out of this one (and I’m keen to see Oda’s creative solution).

The shitshow that is Law’s current existence continued once he hung up. Doflamingo is Doflamingo. He caught up with Law again near the end of episode 648. With that slasher smile, he shot Law with a string bullet and demanded to know who Law had called for help.

Doflamingo must be confident he has Law where he wants him because he spilled the beans on his diabolical plan to snare Luffy. “Give me back Caesar’s heart already. It’s so meaningless for you to keep hanging on here. Strawhat has already walked into the trap I set. He’s fighting in the gladiatorial contest at the Colosseum. Tough contenders from all over the world come to fight in it. Outlaws only. It’s a deadly competition. When someone loses, it’s a one way ticket to hell! He will never come out of the Colosseum alive! It’s the end of your alliance, Law. Just give up!”

I wonder if Law will use the heart as leverage. Maybe he’ll give up Caesar’s heart to escape, regroup and stop Doflamingo the old-fashioned way: with Tontatta military might. (Doflamingo better not kill him off...)

Don’t worry, Chinjao. Luffy will beat you until you feel better! :D

[novaimpactgenerator-blog]

First things first: Hello! Second: May I say your recent work on a request tugged my heartstrings so much that it inspired me to think of my own request of where the Lost Light's female human (giant sized thanks to Brainstorm's idea of sizing them up), Rung, Whirl are dealing with the Fort Max hostage situation, though this time the human is trying to calm Max down, but of course Whirl is trying to make sure Max doesn’t hurt Rung or her by making jabs at him so he could hurt him instead. (1/2)

A Hostage Situation:

“Wow! This is amazing, Brainstorm!” You examined yourself in the mirror with the teal and white scientist standing next to you. You were now able to stand up to his elbow joints and looked down at the device responsible for your new found size attached to your wrist. I reminded you of a digital watch except the time was replaced with height measurements and the side rim was a dial you could turn to adjust said measurements. However, it seemed like the current setting was the tallest.

“I really have outdone myself this time, haven’t I,” he stated smugly. “It was a bit difficult to figure out to expand your body since its made of flesh and not metal. Nothing I couldn’t handle though!”

“Well, thanks. I mean it. This will make living here with you guys a lot easier.” You then began to look over the bodysuit that Brainstorm had also made. It was able to change sizes with you. It was even in your three favorite colors! But the weapon specialist did say it could turn nearly invisible so you could wear other clothes over it.

“I have to go show everyone!” You then ran out of the lab to do just that. The entire crew was completely shocked since you had managed to keep this little project a secret. What could you, you wanted it to be a surprise. In total, it took about a few hours to find everyone. Well, almost everyone. You had yet to find Rung, Whirl, and, hell, even Fortress Maximus had managed to elude you. And he wasn’t exactly what you would call subtle.

You decided that you’d start with Rung, and made your way to the most obvious option. His office.

The walk was filled with the occasional exchange of pleasantries among those you passed, but mostly silence. You finally made it. His office was located near the end of the ship to it took a while.

You had just knocked on the door when a deep voice startled you.

“Y/n!? Is that you?” You whipped around to find one of the bots you were looking for, Fortress Maximus. You immediately placed your hand over your rapidly beating heart to calm it.

“Max! Oh, you scared me.” You gave a nervous grin as you looked up to meet his optics. But something was… off. He seemed nervous and kept glancing around as if someone was going to attack him. “Is everything all right, Max? You seem-”

“What are you doing here?” He said cutting you off, but you didn’t take it personally since he looked so shaken up.

“I came to see if Rung was here. I’ve been looking for him. You too, actually.”

“Listen, you need to leave now!” Fort Max bent down and whisper-yelled at you.

“What? Why?”

But the door behind you opened before Fort Max had the chance to respond, and you turned around the face whoever opened it. It was Rung. He looked at you and was utterly shocked that he could look straight ahead and lock gazes with you.

“Brainstorm,” you said absentmindedly.

“Oh, I see. That’s very extraordinary, but I’m actually in the middle of a session right now.” Rung said gesturing to the last bot you were looking for.

The helicopter gave a little wave with his claws. “Yo. Nice upgrade, Y/n. Now I don’t have to worry about stepping on you.”

You were about to laugh when Fort Max snarled in frustration behind you. Before you could turn around to see what was wrong the barrel of a very large gun was suddenly next to your head and pointing at Rung’s terrified face.

“M-Max! What are yo-” you tried to question, but he cut you off again. This time with a real yell.

“IN! NOW!” He shoved the barrel into Rung’s cheek to emphasize that he meant business.

Both you and Rung began to slowly back into the room and you heard Fort Max close the door behind him. Out of the corner of your eye, you noticed that Whirl was crouched down and quietly making his way closer. And it seemed you weren’t the only one who noticed.

Fort Max jerked his gun to point it at the former Wrecker, who immediately threw stealth to the wind and charged at the armed bot with a battle cry. Fort Max fired a few shots at Whirl fully intent on blowing him away, but the blue chopper was nibble and dodged. “BRING IT, GLITCH!”

Whirl jumped over both you and Rung and tackled Fort Max into the door he had just closed. You two made a break for it to the furthest part of the room by the window. You wanted to help but knew you couldn’t.

You watched in horror as your two friends battled it out, and once Fort Max snapped out of his daze it was almost immediately over. What started as a fight turned into a beating for the smaller of the two, but he refused to fall even after his frame was wrecked to hell. Whirl was still struggling when the red-eyed Autobot ripped off his guns and wrapped his entire servo around his helm but went limp when the larger smashed the side of his helm into the wall.

“Whirl!” You cupped your mouth as you feared the worst. You were only slightly relieved when the ex-Wrecker groaned in pain, but Fort Max crushed that relief when he threw him to the middle of the room, beaten and broken and leaking energon. You couldn’t hold back the tears anymore. You knew Cybertronians could survive a lot more than a human, but you didn’t know how much.

The huge grounder then stomped his way over to the two of you and you began to shiver in fear. You slammed your eyes shut when he started reaching out but instantly reopened them when you heard Rung cry out. He had him by the neck as the therapist tried to get away from his assailant.

“No!” You quickly grabbed the large black digits around Rung’s neck and tried to pry them off, but it didn’t deter him in the slightest. Fort Max pulled Rung closer and used his other hand to push you off. You could tell he didn’t put any real force behind his push but it was still able to knock you to the ground as he turned away.

“Max please!”

“Quiet, Y/n.” Max walked past Whirl and sat Rung down on the lounging chair. He then pulled a long reinforced cable from the subspace in his shoulder and began to tie down Rung.

“You don’t need to do this!”

“Yes. I do.”

“Why!?”

“You wouldn’t understand.”

“Then help me understand!… Please.” You made your way to Whirl to check on him. “Why are you doing this?”

“I said. Be. Quiet!” Fort Max then ripped a piece of pipe from the ceiling and speared it through Whirl’s abdomen as he attempted to get up. You couldn’t stop the shriek of terror as energon spattered across your face and body.

Whirl cried out in agony as Fort Max twisted the jagged metal through his delicate circuitry. You pounded your fists against the kibble around his shin while you pleaded and begged for him to quit harming the blue chopper.

Whirl groaned before he rebooted his vox, “Listen, Max. In the hope that this can still have a happy ending- and speaking as someone who appreciates the challenges of adjusting to postwar life- I just wanna say that there’s still time to do the decent thing and kill yourself.”

“W-Whirl, please stop. Don’t push him to hurt you mo-” You whispered to the injured Cybertronian, who only cut you off in return.

“Come on! Blow yourself away! Let’s see a spark-spasm up close!”

“Max! Please don’t listen to him! You can still fix thi-” Whirl interrupted you again.

“Fix this!? Don’t make me laugh! Unless he’s got some kind of time machine hidden under all that armor, I think the frag not! He can’t even fix himself, let alone this mess!” Whirl’s outburst made a growl escape Fort Max’s derma and he looked as though he were about to strike him before a look of realization spread across his faceplates.

“Clever. Trying to get me to lose my cool so you can get the chance to overpower me.”

Rung finally decided to speak up, “Actually, I think you might be crediting him with too much-”

“Seriously, all of this is a bit pathetic, isn’t it? Even for an epic, epic failure like you. I mean not only did you practically beg the Decepticons to take G9 off your hands, but you curled up into a ball the moment Overlor-” KUNCH

Fort Max smashed the barrel of his gun against Whirl’s face denting and crushing the metal around his optic.

“STOP!” You yelled, catching the grounder’s attention. However, it seemed that Fort Max shifting his attention away from Whirl only caused to the ex-Wrecker to vex his assailant more.

“Wow. If I’d known that was the best you’ve got, I would have said something genuinely offensive.” KUNCH “Ugh!”

“PLEASE, STOP IT!!!” You threw yourself at Fort Max’s stabilizer again and slammed your fists weakly against him while tears streamed down your face.

“Anything else?”

You thanked whatever self-preservation instincts Whirl had when he didn’t reply. You then glanced over to Rung to see him looking up. You followed his field of vision to see a small camera blinking in the corner. You slowly got up and stepped closer to Fort Max.

“Max. Please just listen to me. Whatever you’re doing this for, I’m sure there’s another way. You can stop this now and explain yourself and I’m sure everything will be okay.” You tried to sooth the metal giant by gently placing your hand over the servo that wasn’t holding a cannon at Whirl.

“You wanna know why I’m doing this, Y/n? YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY!?” You flinched away when he leaned down to shout in your face, which seemed to make him calm down enough to lower his voice. “Fine… I’ll tell you why…”

Fortress Maximus then proceeded to tell all of you about Garrus 9, about Overlord, and about what he and his crew went through. All the torture and death. You finally understood.

“Oh, Max. You said you didn’t remember. Why didn’t you tell anyone the truth?” You stroked his servo while you looked up at him.

“Because, Y/n, I’m Fortress Maximus. I couldn’t just-”

“No one, and I mean no one, would have held it against you. What you went through wasn’t your fault and would affect even the strongest of bots. It’s okay to be mad. It’s okay to be scared. You have a right to be. And you have a right to want answers. But not like this.” You gestured to the other two bots in the room. “Not by hurting others.” You put your hand on top of the cannon and Max allowed you to slowly push it to point at the ground and away from Whirl, while his guilty optics stared into your gentle eyes. “Like how you were.”

Just as Fort Max’s grip was loosening to drop the weapon he snapped out of his trance. “No. It’s too late to go back now.”

Both you and Rung saw the darkness that took over his optics. “No, dON’T!” Rung tried to reason with him, but he ignored his therapist and grabbed you by the arm and flung you across the room.

Your scream was cut off when your spine collided with the wall next to Rung, who screamed your name. Your ears were ringing, so you felt more than heard the pounding of pede steps getting closer to you. You did, however, manage to make out the sound of Whirl yelling curses at the Autobot who threw you.

“YOU FRAGGER!!! YOU KNOW WHAT!?! SHE’S SO WRONG!!! ANYONE that could be beaten into submission by OVERLORD is nothing but a WEAK, SAD EXCUSE FOR A PATHETIC WASTE OF SPACE!!!”

By Primus, if Fort Max wasn’t pissed off already he sure was now. Your vision came back just in time to see the enraged look on Fort Max’s faceplates and you knew that was the last straw. Max whipped around and stomped back up to Whirl. He pointed the cannon directly at Whirl’s face and the barrel began to light up as it prepared to be fired.

“That’s ENOUGH out of you!” Fort Max moved his digit over the trigger, and in a burst of adrenaline, you lept to your feet and tackled the gun.

When Fort Max saw you, his optics widened in horror and he tried to let go of the weapon, but when you pulled it down with you his digit caught the trigger.

And the gun fired.

Your grip immediately fell from the smoking cannon and you stumbled back a few steps. Every bot in the room stared at you with wide optics. They could only watch in horrible awe as you looked down to see a large hole through your shoulder that was bleeding profusely.

With all the adrenaline pumping through your veins you could barely register the pain you were in. You slowly glance over at Whirl and Rung and gave a weary smile as they trembled in shock and horror.

“It’s going to be okay.” You mouthed silently at the two before return your attention to Fort Max. He trembled as he gaped at your bleeding shoulder and he dropped his gun and fell to his knees.

“What have I done?” Max clutched at his head as he began degrading himself.

“It’s okay, Max.” You started taking shaky steps as you kept the best smile you possibly could.

“No, stop. Don’t come any closer, Y/n.” He shook his head as he tried to shy away from you.

“I won’t leave you, Max. I’ll never leave you to deal with your demon alone ever again.” When you finally got close enough you fell forward and wrapped your arms around his neck as best as you could.

“Please… I don’t want to hurt you anymore.” Fort Max kept his servos hovering around you as his plating rattled.

“I’m here for you. And I care for you too much to turn away from you. I love you, Max. We all do. We’re here for you. In our own ways.”

Once your slurred words sunk in, Fortress Maximus finally broke down and wrapped his servos around you as he began to sob.

You smiled gently while rubbing the back of his helm. Your mind and your body were quickly becoming more fatigued and your inner temperature was dropping from blood loss and you could feel yourself begin to lose consciousness. Using the last of your energy, you looked up at the camera, and even though you had no idea that Rodimus, Ultra Magnus, Drift, and the entire crew were watching, you whispered, “I love you guys.”

And then you drifted into a cold, dark, dreamless void.