Chapter Fifteen: Swords and Talks of Marriage
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It was probably only ten minutes of walking with the man (or dragon) named Sage that they made it to an abandoned kingdom, with houses only a fragment of their former glory. Green moss grew everywhere, making the place even more abandoned. Small critters scuttled around, carrying small flowers in their hands (or paws, should he say). Their heads tilted curiously at the Yonko, before scurrying off towards the mountain.
"They're gathering offerings for the dead child of the gods," Sage spoke softly. Shanks turned to look at the taller man. "I'm sure you're familiar with the tale, considering that book in your hands." He watched as Sage approached one of the decaying buildings, placing a hand gingerly on top of the stone.
"This place used to be the Kingdom of Euphoria, home to the land of the Ancient Ones. I'm rather surprised that you found your way here, pirate. This place is not welcome to outsiders." Sage broke out into a sly grin. "Well, most outsiders."
He began to walk down the mossy cobblestone roads, looking back to beckon the yonko with his hand. "There are a few other places I'd like to show you before the main event. You're quite lucky to arrive right before the full moon."
Shanks looked around the ruins of the fallen Kingdom in fascination. It grew even more when he saw that animals all alike would pause to bow down to Sage, then regarding him with a short bow, before scampering off towards the mountains, just like the others. So far, from what Shanks could see, there was not a single living human being alive on the island, though it made sense.
This place was probably abandoned hundreds of years ago, and given that much of the stone was stained, Shanks could only assume they didn't die out pleasantly.
"What happens on the full moon?" Sage didn't look back as he amusedly answered.
"You'll see."
Eventually they walked towards a rather large castle that could rival the one on Kuraigana. Despite being abandoned, it looked a bit too well to not be inhabited, with the only aspect that showed how much time had passed to be the overgrown vines growing along the walls and the wild flowers that grew outside along it.
To Shanks' surprise, Sage did not enter the castle, only turning his heel so that he walked alongside it, towards the forest. Sage walked with confidence, occasionally greeting the woodland creatures as they made their way up the mountain as well. The sunlight barely hit the ground with the thick green canopy from above, and, despite the heat, the air was not humid for it to be uncomfortable.
It was, oddly enough, perfect.
"This is the place where the rain never comes, only in small sprinkles, and the only terrible weather is the never ending sun."
The familiar words flooded in his mind at that thought. It was unbelievable. To think that a place in a legend- in a story -was in actuality, a place not a figment of imagination, but a reality. He could just imagine the look on your face if you found out about this place. You would be so ecstatic. Ah, his cute little Y/n. Just thinking about you made him so happy.
Shanks blinked when a wolf trotted up to him, holding quite a large banquet of beautiful wild flowers in his mouth. He held it up for Shanks to take, and Shanks hesitantly grabbed it, thanking the wolf. The yonko gave Sage a glance of slight confusion, eliciting a chuckle from the dragon.
"It's a custom for bringing an offering for the dead in Euphoria, and has been for eons. I'm sure your kind does the same as well, do you not?"
"We do. I'm assuming that we're visiting the child in the story?" Sage's golden eyes glistened with amusement and intrigue.
"Yes, you're quite perceptive. I have to say, your soul is rather pure for being a pirate, a yonko no less, but it is still tainted. You're quite a curious individual, just like the last ones who came to our island." They began to climb a long staircase of stone steps that ascended up the mountain.
Shanks' eyes trailed to the forest around him, taking in the ethereal emerald glow. "Is that right? Haha, I'll take that as a compliment. You know, you're not that bad. Aside from attacking me out of nowhere."
"And you as well." Sage lifted up a finger, and a beautiful pastel pink bird came fluttering down to settle on it. The bird chirped a bit, eyes occasionally flickering over to Shanks, and Sage nodded along, listening to her words. When she was done, Sage sent her off with a nod.
"So you can communicate with them?" Sage looked back at his companion.
"Yes. Being a dragon made by the Ancient Ones is quite useful. I'm the caretaker of the island, and they relay messages of any disturbance in the area." Sage gave Shanks a knowingly look. "So yes, that is how I found you." Shanks nodded along, an impressed look on his face.
"That is pretty useful. I know someone who can do something similar to that." The dragon hummed.
"Is that right? The Voice of All Things is a very rare ability to commune with animals among humans, but when someone does have it, it can be quite formidable. I'm sure you've heard of Zou? That old mammal is probably as old as me, but I suppose he's very good at judging others character. I was rather surprised when he let that man read his poneglyph. Ah, well maybe not read read."
"You mean Roger?" His golden eyes flickered to Shanks as he looked behind him, pausing in his footsteps up the stone steps.
"Yes, that guy. He came to this island too with those companions of his almost thirty years ago. He was quite impressive. The Voice of All Things may be rare, but Zunesha speaking is quite a feat in itself. He's not a bad character either, though he was quite boisterous." Sage added that last part distastefully. "It's a shame he had to die." He paused for a second, lips upturning as if thinking about something quite amusing.
Shanks never got the chance to ask what was on his mind when Sage suddenly spoke again. "Ah, we've arrived."
Before Shanks were animals of all sorts gathered together, placing their offerings in front of the shrine. Beside the shrine was a large cube, and upon closer inspection, Shanks realized that it was a poneglyph, except that it wasn't the typical color of a poneglyph, heck it wasn't even red.
It was gold. It was made of solid gold.
"Quite impressive isn't it, Red-haired Shanks?" Shanks walked closer towards the poneglyph, eyes inspecting each grove of each symbol inscribed. The gold block gleamed in the sunlight, and there was not a single organism growing upon it. It seemed to be well cared for, considering how clean it was.
"I've never heard of a solid gold poneglyph..." Shanks murmured to himself. It was beautiful, gleaming brighter than the sun. He turned back to Sage, left arm clutching onto the flowers, before heading for the shrine.
Sage didn't come here to show him the poneglyph, but to pay respects to the deceased; and Shanks was going to do just that.
The animals parted for him, eyes watching his every movement carefully as he walked up to the shrine. It was similar to a small little house dressed in gold, with an opening where a name was inscribed in obsidian. In front of the shrine were offerings of all sorts- fruits, flowers, precious metals, gems, but there was one that stuck out to him the most.
Sitting quietly in front of the name inscribed in obsidian was a single lone red feather.
---
You hummed, holding Phoenix close to your chest as he guided you through the crowds, careful as to avoid any marines. This time, the two of you stood in front of a swords shop. You bit your lip apprehensively.
You were pretty sure you knew who would be inside.
"Ahaha... I think I'm going to look for someone else..." you muttered under your breath, turning around to go into a different direction, earning a pissed squawk from Phoenix. "Phoenix, I don't want to go in there... there's sharp stuff...., you know I don't like sharp things."
You mean 'swords'?
"Y-Yeah, that... Can't we wait for him to come out?" you asked, twiddling your fingers nervously. Phoenix gave you a look that just screamed annoyance. He tilted his head to the side, his eyes piercing through you.
"I know that Master helped me a little, but I prefer using the bokken more... It's not sharp or dangerous, you know- HEY!" You yelped as Phoenix started to tug you into the store. Your exclamation caused a few people to stare at you, and you felt your face grow red in embarrassment. They couldn't see Phoenix because he had a special ability to not be seen by the naked eye, unless you were strong like one of the shichibukai or something.
"Okay, okay, please stop, I'll go inside." A smug look overcame his expression and you pouted a bit, before hesitantly opening the door. There inside, you saw Zoro and a man who you assumed to be the owner of the place. You hoped he wasn't planning on scamming like the last guy you ran into. Hopefully Usopp knew what he was doing.
You felt yourself shake a little at all the weapons all around the shop, on the walls, on shelves, display cases, in barrels. There were so many! You let out a small sigh. At least they were sheathed, unlike Yoru, who only got bandages or nothing.
You jumped when the shop owner spoke loudly at the counter to a familiar green haired man. "What if I tell you this, I'll buy this sword for 200,000 berries, and then you'll have a total of 300,000 berries!"
You furrowed your brows. Was he talking about that nice looking sword on Zoro's hip? It was Wado Ichimonji wasn't it?
Yeah, you were pretty sure it was. Wado Ichimonji was one of the 21 Great Grade swords, so you were pretty sure it was worth more than 200,000 berries. Heck, it was forged in Wano! Man those days reading about swords (to which you complained to Mihawk about, especially having to look at the pictures) was actually doing you some good. Who knew.
Oh right. That also meant that the dude was trying to scam Zoro. Well, Zoro looked like he could handle himself.
"What are you talking about?"
"A-Alright! I-I can make it 250,000! No, 300,000!" Well, at least he was raising the price, but that was still nowhere near the price of a sword forged in Wano. Speaking of Wano, you wondered how your friends there were doing. "Eh... 500,000?"
"Look. Raise the price all you want, this sword isn't--"
"Alright, then! I'll buy it from you for 650,000 berries!" He looked like he was out of breath. "Fine! How does 800,000 berries sound?"
"Um..." The guy turned to look at you furiously.
"What?!" You laughed awkwardly, stepping closer to the duo, careful to mind your distance from the god awful swords. Oh dear why Phoenix. Squeezing Phoenix, you walked up to the counter a bit shyly, causing the man's frustration with you to dwindle just a bit.
Zoro turned to look at the person who decided to interrupt the conversation, only to see you. His eyes widened slightly. Why the hell were you doing in Loguetown?! How? Impossible!
"Erm, I just wanted to say..." You took in a deep breath.
Come on Y/n, be assertive like Doffy, Mihawk, and Shanks told you to be.
Ah, but it was so much easier saying that than actually committing to it. Gathering up all the courage you had left (which wasn't much, considering you used a majority of it for coming inside the store) and looked the man straight in the eye. His Adam apple bobbed as he swallowed thickly, a different aura immediately replacing your previous shy one.
"I don't think you should be scamming people." There you said it. Ugh that took too much energy out of you. Looking back at the man, you could see a furious expression that overcame his face. You quickly looked away until the swords were in your field of vision. When you saw the swords, you immediately looked down to the floor.
So much for being confident...
God, please help you get out of this store. Zoro, meanwhile, raised a brow at your words. Scamming? The man was trying to scam him?
"What? I don't know what you're talking about-"
"Wado Ichimonji is one of the 21 Great Grade Swords, it should be well over the price that you're trying to buy it for." Zoro watched you with confused eyes, though he should have known that you would know your swords, having Mihawk as your Master and all. Seriously though, how did you get that man to be your teacher? And was the katana he owned such a big deal?
"Um, additionally, Wado Ichimonji was forged in Wano, the Land of The Samurai which is closed off to the rest of the world, so I'm pretty sure that if you wanted to purchase the sword, it would be about 10 million berries," you spoke as a matter of fact with confidence, when you were currently dying inside.
Phoenix was also dying due to the fact that you were crushing his lungs with how hard you were holding onto him. This had been a terrible idea.
"Y-You, who are you?!" You tilted your head up to look at him.
"Just somebody who doesn't want their friend to get scammed, but I think he'll be alright." You looked over at Zoro with kind eyes, causing him to stiffen in place. "Isn't that right Zoro?" Before he could answer, you looked behind you, feeling a presence coming towards you. You froze, eyes flashing gold for a brief moment.
It was Tashigi.
"Good morning! Did you finish polishing my Shigure?" She didn't seem to notice you, and you breathed a sigh of relief. You wondered if she would forgive you as easily as Smoker did. You could only watch as Tashigi looked over at Zoro, a wave of relief washing over her face.
"Thank goodness! You're alright! Someone went on a rampage at the navy outpost earlier." You looked up at Zoro curiously. He was the one who caused the rampage, wasn't he? "You were gone too, so I was worried! What a relief...-" Tashigi froze when her eyes slid over to your shy form beside Zoro.
"Um... Shigi-chan, hello..." you stammered when you noticed her gaze.
Ah, maybe you should apologize now like you did with Smoker. You breathed in deeply, before locking eyes. It would be such great timing if one of your visions appeared right about now like it did a second ago. Alas, it didn't work that way.
"I-I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for not telling you and Smokey and everyone. You stood there, twiddling your fingers. "I thought that maybe you would treat me differently... I didn't think that I would get a bounty though... I didn't even do anything wrong..."
Tashigi felt her heart hurt in pain as she watched you look so sad, like a kicked puppy. A part of her wanted to shun you, to hurt you for lying to her and for being a pirate, but the good part of her wanted to comfort you and console you, to tell you that she was fine with it. You probably weren't lying when you said that you didn't do anything wrong, but she was a marine! She couldn't just be friends with pirates!
"So, sorry again." You bowed your head, tears beginning to form in your eyes. Zoro looked between you and Tashigi, wondering what the heck was going on and why he was in the middle of it. Tashigi, meanwhile, bit her lip. Damn it. She couldn't do this to you.
She hoped Smoker would forgive her.
"It's okay, Y/n-chan, I forgive you." Walking over to you, she gave you a big hug. You squeezed her tightly, and she squeezed back.
"Thank you.. I'm glad you and Smokey forgave me." Tashigi froze. Smoker-san... forgave you? He actually forgave you for lying and being a pirate? That didn't sound right to her, but with the way the man had been acting the past week, maybe it had. Wiping her now damp eyes, Tashigi released you, putting on a pair of glasses.
When she did so, she caught sight of Wado Ichimonji in the store owner's hands. She gasped.
"Is that Wado Ichimonji?!" She shouted in surprise, grabbing it out of his hands to inspect it. She gasped. "It is Wado Ichimonji!" By now the man looked just about done with life. He wanted so badly to have his hands on that sword but these two women ruined it.
"What a beautifully straight temper line!" she gasped when she unsheathed the sword to examine it. You tensed, instinctively clutching on to Zoro's arm, to his confusement. Your nails dug into him a bit as your eyes were trained on the blade. It looked so sharp..
"Oi, why are you holding onto me?" You tensed when he called you out. It caused Tashigi and the man to watch the two of you. Tashigi's eyes wandered over to the hand you had around Zoro's arm, and she couldn't help but feel jealousy build inside of her.
"S-Sorry... I just... I don't like sharp objects and my friend made me come in here..." Zoro's jaw dropped. No way the student of Mihawk just said they didn't like sharp objects. No way in hell he had to surpass a girl who couldn't even hold a sword. This was so fucked up! This had to be a joke. Someone please tell him that he's dreaming.
Tashigi widened her eyes in realization, quickly sheathing the sword back up. "I'm so sorry! I didn't realize!" You gave her a reassuring smile.
"It's okay Shigi-chan, it's kind of my fault for coming in here to begin with..." She felt her lip quiver when she saw the fearful expression on your face. Damn it, she was such a horrible friend for not knowing about this! She should be the one you were holding on to. Sighing, she turned to Zoro to ask the burning question on her mind.
"What are you doing with such a legendary sword?"
"Curse you! And you!" He shouted, pointing a finger at you, causing you to flinch back into Zoro, causing a frown to form on his face. He may not trust you yet (well you were slowly getting there, especially when he realized how innocent you were, and that you were trying to help him earlier), but nobody talked to the first mate like that, especially to someone who had saved his life (sealing his wounds up on Baratie, if you didn't remember). He was sure Luffy wouldn't have any of it if it were him.
So in theory, he was defending you in Luffy's place. Or at least, that was what he told himself.
"I'm suing the two of you for obstruction of business!"
"Oi!" Zoro growled, slamming his hands on the table. "Don't talk to my first mate that way. Besides, I already told you before, I'm not selling you that sword." You looked up at Zoro with an awe expression. The path to friendship was there, you could see it. Giving him a big hug, he flushed.
"You're so cool! Thank you for defending me!" you laughed, before letting him go. "Oh, but don't worry, I got a friend who deals with these kinds of things. I'll just give him a call..." Right, Doflamingo told you to give him a call if another scammer tried to pull something.
Pulling out your transponder snail, you decided to call Doffy again. He was like a professional people scareer, though was that even ethical?
Probably not, though they kind of had it coming. You were basically giving them karma. Besides, you secretly kind of liked having Doffy scare people. It was fun.
"Princess, is that man giving you trouble again?" Zoro recognized that voice. It was that man, Doffy or whatever that you spoke with on Baratie.
"No, it's a different person. I'm uh..." You looked around nervously at the swords, shuffling a little closer to Zoro. "So uh... don't freak out, but Phoenix uh... he made me go into a sword shop.."
Doflamingo was silent for a moment.
"Phoenix, I know you're listening. When I see you again, I am going to make sure to skin you alive and throw you into the sea." Phoenix didn't seem to be fazed by his threats, but everybody else in the room sure was.
"My dear, are you alright?" You widen your eyes. That was Master's voice! Zoro's eyes widened as he stood beside you. He also recognized that voice.
"Master?"
"Y/n, is someone trying to scam you of a sword?" He asked, distaste clearly present.
"No, but why are the two of you together? Last time I called, Doffy was still in Punk Hazard." Yeah, it just didn't add up. Unless Mihawk decided to go to Punk Hazard too, but you knew your Master didn't like messing in Doflamingo's affairs.
"Mihawk and I, along with a few others, are meeting up due to... reasons. Now then, if you're not the one being scammed, then who is?"
"My friend, Zoro," you answered.
"You mean that fool who dared to challenge me back on Baratie? I must say despite his foolishness, he was quite admirable." You looked up at Zoro who was looking away with an embarrassed blush on his face.
"Yup, and he's listening to the call too."
"Ah, hello... Zoro... I assume that you are being scammed of your Wado Ichimonji?" Zoro blinked in surprise. Did everyone around him seriously know about his sword and he didn't?
"Ah, erm, yes." He coughed a bit into his sleeve to hide his embarrassment.
"You are rather foolish to not know about your own blade. You are rather lucky that my student is such a kind and innocent bean to have helped you out." Doflamingo was laughing in the background as Mihawk basically just dissed him. But Doffy was also laughing because he was using slang. It sounded so odd coming out of the stoic man's mouth. Shanks must be rubbing off of him.
"Ah, don't say that Master! Zoro is a good person! He defended me when the man at the counter threatened to sue me!" you spoke cheerfully, not noticing how quiet the other end of the call got. Ah, but the other three in the room noticed.
"Is that right? Thank you then, Zoro. Now then, where is the man I need to reprimand?" Mihawk spoke.
"You mean we," Doflamingo corrected. Mihawk let out a tired sigh.
"Fine, yes. 'We'." You handed the man behind the counter the transponder snail with an innocent head tilt and smile that sent shivers down his spine. Your innocence and just the knowing look in your eyes was very terrifying, and he was also quite terrified at what your two friends had in store for him. They didn't sound very pleasant.
He wondered if you really were as innocent as you seemed.
"I assume that you are listening," Mihawk started. "I only have a few words for you. Do not ever, try to threaten my student, or I will personally send you to hell. That will be all. Thank you."
"Fufufufufu~ Harsh now aren't you, Mihawk? Though I have to say that someone threatening my little princess is quite... displeasing, and I'd rather not let you off with a warning like the other man, but I'm sure you wouldn't want that, would you, Y/n?"
"No killing," you spoke as if it were a normal topic of conversation. Tashigi, Zoro, and the man were giving you wide eyed stares. Just who the hell was this Doffy person?
"Fufufu, of course you wouldn't want me doing that. You're too sweet." He chuckled. "So as a result of that, I have a proposition for you."
"A-And w-what would that be?" the owner stammered, so nervous that his hands were shaking.
"I would like you to comply with whatever my princess wishes. If she tells you to get down on your knees and beg, which I'm sure would be quite amusing, then beg. If she tells you to give her money then do it. Unless you want to face my wrath as a shichi-"
"Ah, Doffy, I think that you're scaring him," you said, effectively cutting him off.
"Good. I don't appreciate it when people disrespect you."
"I second that," Mihawk spoke.
"I know. Welp, it looks like he's really terrified now, thanks." Doflamingo cackled on the other end, too amused by your behavior.
"I would apologise, but I don't feel like it." Ah, of course he would say that. You spared a glance at the man behind the counter and the stunned faces of Tashigi and Zoro.
"Er, alright then, gotta hang up now, bye."
"Good bye my little princess, call soon or else I'll take you away again." Zoro stiffened. Who in the hell says that they'll take someone away again? Who the fuck were these people?
"Have fun with your new crew, my dear, [please] come visit soon." Stuffing the snail back into your bag, you looked up to see Tashigi staring at you with wide eyes.
Tashigi.exe has crashed.
"Uh... they were just joking. I think." The man at the counter was frozen still, staring at you in some new found light. He was also very in fact, scared for his life. So he did what other sane man would do, treat you like some sort of divine being. He bowed at a 90o angle, sweating profusely because he definitely did not want to die today, even if it were a joke.
He was definitely not going to take any chances.
"Please! Help yourselves to anything! I am humbled to be in your presence!" You widen your eyes at his behavior. Oh no, the two of them have definitely broken the man. You didn't mean to take the joke this far.
"Ah! No! It's alright! I'm sorry that I made you scared because of them..." But it was kind of funny. Ah, Phoenix must be rubbing off on you.
"No! It's my fault! I was trying to scam you friend, so it is the least I can do." You gave him a sheepish smile. This man wasn't that bad at all. Well, not too bad at least. He seemed to have learned his lesson, so that was a good thing.
"Still...thank you!" You bowed, before turning to Zoro with a big smile. "You hear that Zoro? You can get a sword now. You won't have to owe Nami anything!"
"Yeah... I- wait, how did you know that I'd owe Nami?" He stared you down suspiciously.
"I saw it through a vision."
"A vision?" He mumbled, walking over to the bucket of swords. Sifting through it you, you answered him with a "yup". Now beside Tashigi, you happily looped your arm through her own, and she blushed as you did so. "Are you some sort of psychic?"
You stood there to yourself for a moment. "No, I don't think I am. They kind of just come to me randomly."
"Huh." It was silent then for a moment with only Zoro sifting through the barrel with furrowed brows until Tashigi broke it.
"You must really like swords, carrying three of them around. That's almost like this one bounty hunter out there." You blinked at Tashigi. Did she not know...? Was she not paying attention to the call? Well, it might be better if she didn't know, you thought. It was kind of like knowing important people like Mihawk and Doflamingo. If you didn't cut him off before he finished saying 'shichibukai', who knows what kinds of things would happen.
"Bounty hunter, huh?" Zoro mused.
"He's pretty famous. His name is Roronoa." You clung to Tashigi like a koala, looking around the shop with a nervous gaze. But it would be alright. You had two of your friends with you. Looking down at your hands, you smiled at Phoenix.
And you had Phoenix.
Looking around, your eyes got something interesting. Unlatching arms with Tashigi, you approached the small little trinket in curiosity. Was this a sword? It was so tiny, probably the size of your finger. It had a black sheath decorated in gold. It was so pretty for a blade, and you felt comfortable enough to approach it.
Hesitantly, you prodded it with your finger, testing to see if you would be okay. When you were, you picked up the small katana gingerly, staring at it intensely. You wanted to unsheath it, but you didn't have enough courage to do so. You looked over at Tashigi.
"Shigi, can you unsheath this for me?" Tashigi looked a little confused when you handed her the mini katana. She inspected it for a bit, not recognizing the blade, before unsheathing it. But she couldn't. She handed it back to you, an apologetic smile on her face.
"Sorry Y/n, I don't think it's meant to be unsheathed. I think it's just a little key chain." Your eyes wandered to the small katana in your hand. So it was a key chain? That meant that it couldn't cut things, right? It wasn't sharp. Eyes sparkling, you knew exactly what you wanted to get.
Zoro looked at you with raised eyebrows as he pulled a blade from the bucket. "Are you really going to get that?"
"Yup! It's cute, and it's not sharp!" Your eyes caught his, and Zoro felt himself blush a little at the cute little sparkles in your eyes. "I'm going to put it on my bag!" Walking up to the counter, you greeted the man with a smile.
"Can I buy this?" You gave him the keychain, and he raised a brow.
"Are you sure?"
"Yup!" you answered with confidence. He slid it back over to you.
"Well, I told you that you and your friend could have something for free, so you can have it free of charge. You tilted your head.
"It's not a keychain?" The man tensed a bit, remembering that you had a fear of sharp objects.
"No, it's definitely a keychain," he reassured you. "If it weren't, you would be able to unsheath it. Ah, besides, we don't sell blades that small." You nodded your head. Well that made a lot of sense. Who would even use a small blade?
"Alrighty, thank you then!" Happily attaching the keychain to your bag, you held Phoenix tightly in your arms as you carefully maneuvered your way back to your two sword wielding friends. You laughed a little to yourself. If you had been inside the room a few years prior to your training with your Master, you probably would have had a heart attack.
Mihawk did some good for you these past few years.
"... that sword is listed as a Top O-Wazamono sword!" You jumped at Tashigi's voice, looking back at her to see Zoro holding the sword he had pulled out of the bucket. "Is this blade really worth 50,000 berries?!" You looked back at the old man to see his reaction. He looked very uncomfortable. Did he not want to sell it?
"Ah... yes.." the old man spoke reluctantly. You looked back at the sword in Zoro's hand, noticing the beautiful purple color. You could hear a muffled voice the longer you stared at it. It was thirsty for blood. You steadily began to approach the sword without even knowing it as Tashigi and the store owner spoke to each other.
Zoro examined the sword with a contemplative look in his eye. "A cursed sword, huh?" His eyes slowly wandered to you, who had somehow ended up by his side, eyes locked onto the sword. That's odd. Didn't you say that you were afraid of sharp objects? What were you doing so close to him?
Your hand slowly stretched out to grab it and instinctively, Zoro made a move to grab your wrist. Blinking slowly, you looked up at Zoro with a confused look on your face. He looked angry.
"What do you think you're doing?" His hand gripped your wrist tighter.
"I..." What were you doing? The faraway voice had disappeared and you stared at the sword with sad eyes, slowly backing off. "I don't.. I heard..."
You shook your head, leaning up against Zoro, wary of the sword. "Sorry.. Thanks for stopping me, but I think you should take him." The swordsman stared down at you in curiosity.
Him? He mused. Just what was going through your mind when you tried to grab it? You could probably tell that it was cursed too, considering that you had trained under Hawk-eye. He was planning on taking the sword, but with your reassurance, he felt himself wanting to take it even more.
Call it intuition, but he felt that maybe it won't be that bad having you on board. Maybe he had been reading you wrong, all too paranoid by everything that you did. The transponder snail, the large ass bounty, your Master... But if Luffy trusted you, you had to be good.
His hand subconsciously touched his healing wounds.
And you healed him. Surely he would have died at Arlong Park without your help. His grip tightened around the sword. Besides, Mihawk seemed to be quite fond of you (especially with the conversation earlier), praising you about how kind you were. He sounded so proud too.
It was so.. weird.
Then again, Luffy was weird too.
--
His face held no expression as he stared at the cards that were clearly laughing up at his face. Though the fates would never lie, the one before him had to be a joke. Swiping a lock of blond hair to the side elegantly, Hawkins shuffled his cards back into the deck before laying them back out again.
Only to get the same result.
"I will see my true love soon," he mused. "The cards never lie." Shuffling them back into the deck, he wondered curiously what his true love would look like. Would it be someone he would be able to tolerate? Someone he would dislike? The biggest question was whether or not his true love would like the life he led.
Normally if this were any normal 'you will see your true love soon' then he would have brushed it off. He had no time for love in his life, whether it be true or untrue, and he would not want them to suffer because of the life that he chose, however, the cards had foretold that he would not be able to avoid them, that this person would be significant in his life.
So if he could not get rid of them, then he must embrace it if fate wanted him to do so.
The boat rocked gently against the waves, and Hawkins looked up to stare at the blue sky. He hoped that his true love was tolerable, that was probably the most important thing to him. It wasn't looks, but compatibility. Hawkins didn't want some slut who would go fucking every single person they come across, or was filled with greed.
He'd prefer it if it were someone who would respect his choices and commune with quite well.
Three weeks. He had three weeks until his supposed 'true love' would show up and throw their way into his life.
His hand twitched slightly, and he realized that he was still holding the new wanted posters in his hands. Looking down, his lips upturned slightly at the odd photo. Quite surprising that they had used such a photo. Eyes moving down, he read the name.
L/n D. Y/n. Moving further down, he paused at the value.
...500 million. His eyes moved to linger back on your distressed face as you were slinged over the shichibukai's shoulder, who seemed to be having the time of his life. There was something about you that made him feel something, not romantically, but in a way, he felt that you had quite a fate in store for you.
L/n D. Y/n, may we meet soon.
---
"Mamama!" The Sweet Commanders, along with other big names in the family were gathered at the table, very confused as to why their mother had called them in. Katakuri had his arms crossed as he sat at Big Mom's side, eyes scanning his siblings that had joined the small gathering.
"Mama, why have you called us?" he asked, voicing the question that was lingering on their minds. Big Mom laughed, gesturing for some of the chess soldiers to bring a piece of paper. It was a wanted poster to be exact. The soldier placed it down on the table so that they all could see it, and a few of them chuckled in amusement.
"Mamama! Look! My wittle, little Y/n has become a pirate!" she laughed, cooing a bit. Cracker whistled as he got a closer look at the poster.
"A starting bounty at 500 million? The marines must be desperate." He laughed, before nudging Snack. "The little princess almost has a higher bounty than you. I think you gotta get your game up a little more."
"I think it's just because she's naturally talented," Snack huffed, causing Cracker to shrug.
"Sure, whatever floats your boat, little brother." Smoothie leaned forwards, resting her cheek on her hand, eyes trained on the wanted poster. Pulling it closer towards her, her eyes trailed to your form on Doflamingo's shoulder.
"Even so, you have to admit, that photo is rather ridiculous," Smoothie spoke, chuckling a little. "To think that they would actually allow such a photo is quite absurd."
"It's Y/n, what do you expect?" Oven spoke out.
"I want to kill that bastard," Daifuku growled under his breath. "How dare he manhandle a member of the family!" Katakuri's eyes flickered to his younger brother.
"We are not killing him." No matter how much he wanted to kill Doflamingo too, he also didn't want you to be sad. Killing Doflamingo probably wouldn't be a great thing. Well, it would, but not for you.
"Kukukuku~ I think Charlotte D. Y/n would look a lot nicer," Perospero added to the conversation. "It has a nicer ring to it."
"I bet they would have raised her bounty if they knew she was connected to us," Cracker said, swiping a cookie from the table. He propped his legs onto the table. "Then she probably would've had a higher bounty than you, Snack-"
"Why do you keep picking on me?" Snack complained.
"Cracker." The purple haired man huffed.
"Yeah yeah, sorry Nii-san." Cracker patted Snack's back. "But you know, Charlotte Y/n does sound nice. Mama, can I marry her-" Cracker paused, suddenly feeling intense stares coming from all around him. Smoothie had a frown on her face as she crossed her legs, Katakuri was drilling holes into his head, Daifuku and Oven suddenly looked perturbed, and Perospero was licking his giant lollipop as his eyes watched him amusedly.
Right, Katakuri also liked her. This was awkward. He didn't want to steal his favorite brother's crush, but at the same time he really did like you too. There was only one way to solve this.
"Eh... you wanna share?" Smoothie rolled her eyes, scoffing at his actions.
"Y/n isn't an object, Cracker," she scolded him. Katakuri didn't answer Cracker as he merely stared at him with an unknown emotion.
Now Katakuri loved all his siblings, and he could absolutely not say 'no' to them. But the thing was, he also really liked you and he didn't exactly want to share, so he was stuck in a dilemma. He also knew that a few of his other siblings liked you too, and he didn't exactly want this to turn into a huge polyship. And it would be rather weird, wouldn't it? Would it count as incest if they all decided to have a polyamarous relationship with you? Oh dear, this escalated quickly.
"Maybe..." Katakuri mumbled, deciding to look up at their mother who had been rather silent the entire time.
"Cracker, are you really trying to ask me for Y/n's hand in marriage?" She asked, eyebrows raised as she leaned forwards. "And you dare say you want to share with Katakuri?" Her eyes flickered to her second son. She exhaled, suddenly looking lost in a daydream.
"Ahh, as much as I'd love Y/n to marry into the family, I already promised her that she didn't have to, I'm sure you remember that, Cracker." Cracker felt himself sweating bullets. He was treading on thin ice right now. "Mamama!! But it would be quite exciting to have a Y/n marry two men. I only want my wittle Y/n to have the best husbands after all!"
The siblings furrowed their brows. Wait, so did that mean-
"I can just imagine it- the dress that she would wear, and the wedding cake!!" Her eyes drifted to all her children, namely Cracker and Katakuri.
She wasn't actually planning on getting you married to those two was she?
"What if Y/n doesn't like men, Mama?" Smoothie asked. The men all turned their heads to stare at the Commander with wide eyes. It was silent as Big Mom turned to look at Smoothie.
"What are you trying to imply, Smoothie? Do you perhaps want to marry her as well?"
"I'm only making sure that Y/n is comfortable," she responded. Linlin thought to herself for a moment, leaning back into her chair. A frown settled on her face for a brief moment, before she smiled widely again.
"Well I wouldn't want Y/n-chan to be uncomfortable. I'd have you marry her too, of course." Cracker stared open mouthed at Smoothie. He looked utterly mortified.
"What?!" Oven and Daifuku exchanged glances. Was this seriously happening right now?
Wait. 'Too' ?! Did that mean...? They both raised their hands.
"Can I marry Y/n too?" The two snapped their heads to look at each other, eyes glaring into the other's soul.
Perospero sighed, leaning into the back of his chair. Everything was suddenly spiraling out of control; it was unbelievable. Sure, Perospero knew that you were quite the icon in the family (he knew the Katakuri fan-club loved you very much, actually, that was probably an overstatement-), but he seriously didn't think you were that influential.
Sure, he liked you because you were pleasant to hang out with and you liked to do the same things he did and didn't question him, and the fact that you seemed to enjoy his devil fruit abilities, or- He paused in his thoughts.
He was rambling.
Alright, so maybe you had quite the large influence on the family these past two years, but he never actually developed any romantic interest in you. Well, not that he knew of. And also, just the fact that the three commanders in the room wanted to marry you was quite... Well he didn't exactly know what to think of the situation besides the fact that he felt very sorry for you.
Especially when all of them were gigantic compared to your smaller size.
He didn't want to think what would happen if Mama were to ask you to bear her children. Good thing Mama listened to you and didn't actually force you into relationships like everyone else. God, you were lucky or else this would have taken a darker turn.
"Eh? So you all want to have a chance at her hand in marriage?" Big Mom laughed. "How surprising," she mused.
"Fine, I'll allow you all a chance. Mamama!! You know if one of you (or all lol) end up marrying her, I'll make sure it's the grandest wedding ever!" Linlin's mouth watered just at the thought of the huge ass wedding cake she would have. Ah, now she really wanted you to get married.
She thought back to your cute little face and those innocent sparkling eyes, reminding her of the promise she had made to you. Honestly, she didn't really know what she was thinking when she made that promise, but she knew she wouldn't be able to break it without any repercussions. You knew the other Yonko, and if they found out, things were going to get hellish.
There was only one thing that was going in Big Mom's way, and it was the fact that you bonded with her children for the past year. Even if she couldn't force you to get married, her children still stood a chance. Ah, yes children.
Big Mom briefly let her thoughts wander to a large wedding where you got married to her children. She never had a polyamourous wedding before, and she couldn't help but feel excited.
But wait- What if she had a double wedding? No wait, what if she had you marry her best children?
She felt her heart stop. That would be absolutely amazing! And you would get everything you would ever want, protection, a family, and she could take care of you and have tea parties with you everyday! "Mamama! Wouldn't it be nice if you all married Y/n?" Everyone at the table exchanged glances. Perospero meanwhile face-palmed.
Everyone at the table knew the answer, but it was not the right one. They either had to say 'yes' to appease their mother, or face the consequences. Either way, none of the options were good.
"Mama, why don't you, uh, let *Fairy-chan decide?" Perospero suggested, trying to quell the sudden change in mood coming from his younger siblings. Honestly, his mother was going to be the death of him, and if not her it would be his siblings.
*Fairy-chan is Perospero's nickname for Y/n. It's short for Sugar-fairy.
"Yeah, I agree with Perosu-nii. I um, I don't exactly want to marry Y/n," Snack mumbled, but everyone at the table heard. They all began to glare daggers at him except for Katakuri and Perospero, who were just watching the whole ordeal play out, slightly concerned for his well being.
"Why don't you want to marry her?" Smoothie asked, narrowing her eyes. "Is she not good enough for you?"
"Snack just can't appreciate a beautiful woman," Cracker spoke, crossing his arms, meeting Katakuri's crimson eyes. "I meant angel." Katakuri nodded in approval, and Cracker felt his heart swell.
"Eh? Snack doesn't want to marry Y/n? Do you not love her?" Big Mom narrowed her eyes at him, and he could feel his soul leaving his body. No it wasn't like that, it wasn't like that at all! He just didn't want to get caught up in the drama. Especially not with Katakuri, Smoothie, or Cracker.
He had a gut feeling that he should avoid the drama as much as possible.
"No I like her, but I think Katakuri is a better fit for her.." He trailed off, looking to the side. Cracker looked unhappy at Snack's words. The commander snapped his head to look at Katakuri who seemed to be happy hearing Snack's words.
"What? What about me?"
"You're too brash, Cracker," Daifuku answered. Cracker looked appalled.
"And you're not?"
"Now now, I'm sure you can share Y/n somehow." Big Mom laughed. "Mother always said that sharing is caring, and we care about Y/n, don't we?"
Yes they did care about Y/n, but some would say a little too much.
Linlin sighed, devouring the sweets that were set before her. "Ah mother, I want to show you Y/n so much. She is so cute and precious with such a beautiful dream. She reminds me of you, Mother and our dream. Mother, I miss you. Please come back."
---
"You look horrid," Mihawk grumbled, polishing Yoru with a cloth. Doflamingo laughed beside him, placing the snail that looked like you back into his pocket. The two of them were currently in Mariejois due to an unexpected and short notice meeting. Nevertheless, the two attended as they had done in the past when you were still with them.
Old habits die hard, they supposed.
"Horridly amazing, Mihawk. Look at my beautiful features, Fufufufu~ Ah, but my little princess is the most stunning one in the photo." Doflamingo chuckled, eyes still trained on the beautiful photo.
"I believe that is because everyone else is unsightly." Doflamingo looked at Mihawk with a raised eyebrow. He looked back at the wanted poster, before throwing his head back to laugh.
"Are you calling yourself ugly? My my, and here I took your to be a narcissist." Mihawk gazed at Doflamingo, unamused. He placed down Yoru carefully against the table, before looking straight up at the flamingo who decided to sit on the table in front of him.
"The only narcissist is you, Doflamingo. My student is so beautiful that when compared to others, they look absolutely undesirable. And yes, I would say that includes myself."
"As it should be." The two looked to the door to see Hancock with her hands on her hips, strutting towards them. "Men are disgusting creatures. Of course my Y/n would be far more beautiful than yourselves." She scrunched up her nose slightly at the marine who was ogling her. "Tch, disgusting pig."
"Boa Hancock, I'm surprised to see that you showed up," Doflamingo commented. She brushed her hair to the side, elegantly sitting down on the chair as a marine quickly pushed her chair in.
"Tsk, I only came here because I was informed that this meeting was about my precious Y/n." At your name, her face red, and she slapped her hands on her cheeks. "AHH!! I'm so proud of her! I can't believe my Y/n became a pirate already!" She coughed into her hand, clearing her throat.
"I mean- You should all be disappointed in yourselves that Y/n has a higher bounty than you." It was then that Crocodile and Jinbe decided to walk in the room. Crocodile let smoke escape his lips as he puffed on his cigar.
"I don't care, Hancock." She gave him a frustrated look.
"Well if you don't care, you obviously don't care for Y/n. Tsk, stupid men. This is why Y/n should be with me, someone who actually understands her instead of pretending to understand."
"If anything, I think you give the least damn of what she wants," Crocodile retorted.
"Now now, I don't think we should be fighting right now," Jinbe spoke, trying to quell the rage between the two reptiles. "Let us not forget what we came here for."
"Kishishishishi! You fools are fighting already?" Moria laughed as he took his place in the room, plopping down beside Kuma.
"Y/n has always been the mediator," Kuma spoke, flipping through his bible. "Perhaps that is why." The seven of them immediately took their seats as Sengoku and Garp walked in through the door.
"It's nice of you seven to join us today," Sengoku spoke, except it was anything but nice. Not when pirates were involved. Garp laughed as he sat besides the fleet admiral, pulling out photos of his precious granddaughter.
"Now who's ready to talk about how cute my little granddaughter is?" Sengoku merely sighed as Garp and the shichibukai bonded over how cute you were. Seriously, why the hell was he the supervisor of this event that happened practically every month? And they even called themselves a club, naming themselves the 'Y/n is the best and I love her club'.
He grumbled under his breath, watching them interact in such passion as he munched on his beloved rice crackers. This was probably more of an auction than a club actually, with Garp selling photos he stole from Kizaru to the seven idiots.
Somewhere on Marineford, Kizaru sneezed.
Doflamingo laughed as he looped an arm around Mihawk's shoulder, and Mihawk looked like he wanted nothing to do with the man. Crocodile and Boa were throwing as much money at Garp for this one photo they both wanted, and Kuma, meanwhile, was sneaking a photo off the table.
"I wonder why I come to this every month," Jimbe quietly spoke to himself, before his eyes spotted a cute photo of you as a child.
Nevermind, he knew why he came every month.
"Oh right, this pathetic shopkeeper tried to scam my little princess today." The room was quiet for a moment as everyone watched Doflamingo with wide eyes.
"What."
---
Extra:
"Noo!! Don't do it!" Zoro smirked as he threw the sword into the air. You stood in your place near Tashigi (Zoro had made sure that you were far away from the stunt that he was going to pull) as you watched the sword fly into the air and hit-
... the ceiling.
Everyone's faces blanked at the fact that the cursed sword was now stuck in the ceiling. You laughed a little, leaning into Tashigi just a bit. You supposed that the cursed sword was no match for ceilings. Haha.
CRASH!
Or not.
You covered your eyes, coughing a bit as the roof caved in where Zoro stood.
"Oh my gosh!" Tashigi exclaimed from beside you.
Oh my gosh indeed.
The ceiling had suddenly caved in, collapsing at an alarming rate like Greenland's glaciers, but none of it had hit Zoro, miraculously, but the cursed sword was nowhere to be seen. It was probably buried underneath the rubble. Zoro sighed as he rubbed the back of his head. Man, he didn't think that would happen. He didn't throw it that high up either. His eyes instinctively glanced over at you to make sure that you were alright, but his eyes had widened when he did so.
Tashigi and the old man looked at Zoro's frozen state, eyes following his line of vision back to you, and Tashigi let out a terrified gasp. You furrowed your brows in confusion.
"What?"
Looking to your left, your nose barely touched the sharp blade of the cursed sword. Oh, so that's what had flown past your face. You were silent for a moment.
Wait.
You yelped, immediately appearing behind Zoro. You almost got a face full of metal. You almost died. How the heck did that sword go from where Zoro stood to the otherside of the room? You buried your face deep into Zoro's torso, eyes brimming with tears.
"Zoro... I'm scared..." you cried into his back. The man stiffened, craning his head to look at your terrified form. "Can we please go. Please? Or hold my hand?" you begged. "I don't want to be in here anymore..." You sniffled, holding onto him tighter.
"Ack, fine! Stop crying on me!" he grumbled, trying to push you back, but not too hard so that you'll go stumbling into the swords behind you. You slowly released him, and he sighed, reaching forwards to grab your hand, intertwining your fingers together.
"There, is that better?" he asked, a little annoyed that this was his first mate. In a way, you were just like Luffy. You wiped your tears a bit.
"Yeah." You looked at Tashigi, stretching your hand out. "H-Hold my hand too?"
In the end the shopkeeper was so terrified by your near death experience that he had allowed Zoro to have his family heirloom. And Phoenix got a kick out of that.
Oh, and a certain shopkeeper of Love Love Pirates received another terrifying phone call that he for sure had shit his pants at.
----------
Author's Note:
This chapter got a little long XD.
I'm going to be posting a little book about some story ideas soon, so if you want to see some ideas I have (most likely future stories), feel free to look. Most of them (if not all) will probably be x readers.
Also, I have decided to add 'secondary love interests'. These love interests may or may not have an ending and will be there for comedic effect or to add tension to the story. Buggy and Caesar are some of them.