Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or the characters, those belong solely to the beautiful brain of Eiichiro Oda.

Note: I updated my profile with some information regarding my One Piece fics in case anyone is curious.

Chapter 9: The Liar

"…right, I'm a captain…"

Zoro cracked an eye open, the late morning sun temporarily blinding him until his vision adjusted. Luffy was walking along the wide ledge, arms held out to either side for balance, his jacket floating around him in the draft climbing its way up the side of the building.

"…ourse I have subordinates…"

Luffy grinned, eyes sliding to glance over the edge of the rooftop briefly before returning to focus on his footing. Zoro shifted slightly, putting his feet in a better position to stand in case he needed to leap after a certain someone. But Luffy's steps were certain, his balance impeccable as he stood one-legged on the ledge and stared out over the city. He squinted, the hems of his jacket fluttering to mid-chest height as the wind picked up. Then he heaved a great sigh and Zoro felt a little sickening jump in his gut as Luffy fell backward—

—and his back smacked the concrete so that he was lying perfectly in the middle of the ledge, one hand flying to secure his hat to his head. Chagrin squirmed its way up his ribs and Zoro leaned his head back against the stone behind him with a concealed grumble. Truly, this kid would be the death of him.

"…thousand! Yes, you heard me…"

Luffy started humming tunelessly to himself and Zoro let his eyes slide back shut.

"…Ha! Hahaha! Well, maybe if you…"

He took a deep breath and relaxed, feeling the sun soak into his weary muscles and loosen them. The wind brought the coolness of shadows with it, skidding up from the training field and swirling snatches of conversation to them. There weren't usually students out in the training field at this time of day, but it wasn't unheard of for some teachers to take lessons outside on nice days, of which this definitely counted.

"…adventure fighting the giant goldfish…"

Zoro let himself drift, Luffy's tuneless humming drifting in and out with the change in the wind. He took a breath, feeling the tight new skin from the healing wound in his abdomen and lower back stretch. The past couple of peaceful weeks had afforded him the chance to rest and he was nearly completely healed. Even his ribs were back to feeling normal, which was a relief; he'd been growing tired of them shifting whenever he moved.

"…doubt me?! Well, then I'll show…"

The wind ruffled his hair and he yawned, jaw cracking. He was determined to appreciate days like this as long as he could because his life seemed to have a hectic pace since he'd met Luffy—

"Exploding Star!"

Zoro jerked to his feet, eyes flying open at the sudden explosion no more than ten feet from him. He coughed and tugged his shirt up over his nose and mouth, glad he'd left the top unbuttoned, eyes watering in the sudden smoke.

"Luffy?"

The wind dragged the smoke out of the way enough for him to see the broken ledge his captain had been laying on. The only thing left on the rubble was his hat, which the wind plucked at until it began tumbling down the side of the building. Zoro's wide-eyed gaze swiveled over the rooftop, "Luffy!"

Several screams rang through the air and Zoro staggered through the dissipating smoke until he could peer over the blasted ledge.

"Is that a person?!"

"What happened?!"

"You killed him!"

Zoro's stomach dropped and he spun on his heel, slamming the rooftop door open and clattering down the steps.

Dammit, Luffy!

Not here…

Not here either…

Is this it?

Nami yanked the paper out of the folder and held it up until it caught the reflected sunlight streaming over her shoulder. She felt her grin growing, but it froze in place at the sound of running footsteps in the hallway. She crouched a bit lower until just her eyes could be seen over the row of cabinets, gaze anchored to the door.

The footsteps continued… But no one came in. She could hear muffled shouts now and the growing murmur of a crowd. Something hit the door and Nami dropped behind the cabinets completely, listening…

Whatever it was, it moved away from the door. She clucked her tongue and grumbled to herself, "One chance. I get one chance to come in here after months of waiting and all I get is three measly minutes to look!" She folded the map and tucked it into the hidden pocket in her bra, then shuffled to the end of the row of gray cabinets and peered around the corner at the door.

She could see the shadow of feet through the crack underneath, a hissed conversation going on outside of it. Body tense, Nami darted across the room until she was leaning against the wall beside the door. She could feel her heartbeat in her palm as she grabbed the handle and turned it ever so slowly and glimpsed through the tiniest of cracks.

"Did you see that?"

"What fell?"

"It looks like mostly stone, but I could've sworn—"

Nami took a steadying breath. So she wasn't discovered. At least not yet. She kept her eyes on the sliver of hallway she could see and counted down silently.

Three, two, one…

She opened the door and slid outside, waiting until she heard the little snick of the latch catching before she wandered nonchalantly toward the crowd gathering at the windows.

"Really! I swear it was a kid!"

"You're so full of it, there's no way that could…"

Nami paused mid-step and all conversation ceased as every eye caught on the shadow tumbling past the window. It slowed and seemed to hover in the air for a moment that lasted forever. Nami felt a cold sweat flash across her skin at the memory of that same hat falling in a warehouse, the red band shimmering in the light like a bloody banner that whispered you did this—

The hat dropped out of sight and she sucked in a gasping breath, her whole body shaking. She stepped away until her hands met cool metal and she leaned back against the bank of lockers, eyes wide and staring over the crowd at the now-empty window. She chuckled nervously to herself, hands grasping her elbows as she curled inward. It didn't happen. He's fine.

"Holy—Doesn't that look familiar?"

"Hey, yeah! That first-year, right? The one we saw getting chased by the student police?"

Nami snorted, letting the other students' voices wash over her until the tremors abated. She straightened and sighed, shaking her shoulders out before she continued down the hallway. Of course they were the ones who had interrupted her work.

Red flashed in her mind again—You did this.

She raised her chin with a huff. She didn't care what they were doing, but there was no way she was getting involved. Luffy was a firestorm waiting to happen and Zoro was a barely-leashed typhoon. Useful for certain situations, sure, but her work right now required more subtlety than those two combined could come up with. They weren't the tools she needed to use for—

Tools? You sound just like him.

She felt something hot slide over her fingers and looked down, only to find she'd dug her nails so deeply into her palm that she'd broken the skin. She cursed quietly to herself and lifted her hand to try to stem the bleeding, changing her track to head for the infirmary.

I am not. I am not like him. She bit her lip, breath heaving as she made her way down to the second floor, heels clicking loudly in the silence and providing a tempo for her thoughts to follow, I'm not, I'm not, I'm not, I'm not, I'm not—

She exited the stairwell and glanced up at the jarring sound of boots thundering down the hallway toward her. The cadence of the gait was familiar and her suspicions were confirmed as Zoro skidded to a halt in front of her, arms wheeling to drain his momentum before he crashed. She turned her head to scowl up at him, but the expression slipped from her face at the half-strangled panic in his eyes. She abruptly pointed behind her with her good hand, "Down the stairs to the first floor, straight down the hallway, and through the doors at the end. That should dump you right outside."

He shot past her, a breathy "thanks" and a flash of gratitude in his eyes the only replies she received before the echo of his boots in the stairwell drowned out all other sounds. She glanced back, body half-turned toward the stairs, but eventually she shook her head and continued down the hallway toward the infirmary.

Usopp stared at the lumpy shadows in the dust, hands raising subconsciously, "Woah, woah, wait a minute, I didn't do anything…" His voice trailed off, eyes pulled to the straw hat dancing in the air, watching as it drifted to settle in the new teacher's palm.

She eyed it thoughtfully, turning it in her hands, fingers running along the edge. "A straw hat… Didn't the student who stood up to Morgan-san have a straw hat?"

Usopp's heart stopped beating. Oh, no. No, no, no, because if he just shot him down then—

She turned those all-knowing blue eyes to him and placed a finger on her chin, "The rookie, right? Isn't he always with the second-year known as the Pirate Hunter?"

—then the other one would show up soon! Usopp started waving his hands in front of him and smiled nervously, "Hey, hey, hey, aren't we jumping to conclusions here?" He gestured to the cloud of dust that still hadn't cleared, "That's all just rubble, right? There's no way someone was on the roof, I would've seen them!"

The teacher lifted the hat in her hands, "What about this?"

Usopp went to point and realized he was still holding his slingshot. He hastily tucked the weapon into his belt, well out of view, then waved his hand at the hat with a smug smile, "That could've come from anywhere! Look at all those people"—she followed his finger to look at the crowds gathered at the windows—"I bet one of them dropped it by accident and it fell out of a window."

The woman hummed questioningly to herself—Crap, what was her name again?—and tilted her head, muttering, "That's certainly possible…"

Usopp laughed, taking a few roundabout steps toward the doors back into the building, "Right? That's way more likely than someone being on the roof." He scoffed and shrugged, "Isn't that off limits anyway?"

The dust was clearing and Usopp gestured at it vaguely, "Look, it's all just rubble. See, I told—"

"AHHHH!"

Usopp nearly jumped out of his skin, hands flying in front of his face instinctively.

"Is that a person?!"

No, no, no one is there, it's a lie—

"YOU KILLED HIM!"

Usopp's eyes popped open and he peeked between his fingers at his classmates, following their gazes until he landed on—

Oh.

He gulped, nausea clambering up his throat. Oh, that was a uniform, wasn't it? His hands lowered and he took one horrified step closer, eyes scanning the dark fabric. The student had landed on the back of his neck, head twisted and hidden from view under the sagging weight of the rest of his body. Usopp glanced up at the roof and then back down. Even if he hadn't clearly broken his neck, no one could survive that kind of fall.

His tongue felt thick. He was going to be sick.

Someone moved next to him and Usopp jumped, "Wait—Hey—There's no way—"

The student turned a horrified stare to him, "You murdered him!"

Usopp stumbled back a few steps, "That's not possible!" He clenched his teeth, brow crinkling as he pointed sideways at the body, "No one is supposed to be up there! There wasn't anyone up there! This is impossible! It's—It's not my fault!"

Someone started moaning, "Oh, we're all going to die. If that's really the one who stood up to Morgan then Pirate Hunter won't forgive this…!"

Another student stumbled almost drunkenly past them and headed for the door, face pale, "I'm… I'm going to get the student police force!"

Usopp lurched after him, "Hey wait a second, it's not my fault!" Then there were hands on him and he spun to look at the students holding his arms, "What are you doing?!"

One of them gulped, "P—P—Pirate Hunter will want to know who did it!"

Usopp's face twisted, "What?!"

He spun to face the students on his other side as they nodded, "That's right! Maybe he'll let us live if we give you to him!"

Usopp's jaw dropped and he could do nothing but repeat, "What?!"

Click.

Nami smirked to herself. Even with an injured hand, she could still pick locks and case a room faster than any other thief she'd ever met. Unfortunately, they didn't have any of the good drugs, the ones that would fetch a nice price with the right people. She just cleaned out the cut and slapped a bandaid on it and left, making sure to re-lock the door from the inside on her way out. She had no idea where the nurse had gone, but it was better that no one knew she'd been in there.

Now if she could just find a quiet place to take a longer look at that map—

—but why were those same boots now pounding down a different hallway? She leaned back as Zoro shot out of the hall on her left and stumbled a few steps before he came to a halt. He spun to look over his shoulder, her shock mirrored on his face as he asked accusingly, "What the hell are you doing here?"

Her shoulders stiffened, "What am I doing here?! I thought you went downstairs!"

He scowled, "I did, but your directions were terrible! The doors I went through took me to a classroom!"

Nami's jaw dropped, "How could they have led—No." She stomped forward and snaked her good hand out and grabbed Zoro's ear, the green-haired man grabbing at her wrist and hissing, "What do you think you're doing?!" She didn't miss that his eyes flicked to the bandaid on her other hand. He looked puzzled, but before he could ask, she dragged him toward the windows, "You are absolutely useless sometimes! Honestly, how someone with so little sense of direction manages to make it to the school every morning beats me, but since you clearly can't be trusted to make it down a single flight of stairs"—she flipped the catch on the window and pushed the bottom half until it creaked open, the hinges at the top almost rusted shut, then spun Zoro around to face her—"then I will just have to make sure you make it outside, won't I?"

His eyes widened and he leaned back like a spooked horse, "Woah, wait, what are you—"

She shoved his head through the window, wedging his wide shoulders into the gap, trapping his arms by his side. He wiggled, voice muffled by the glass in the way as he shouted, "You damn witch, what do you think you're doing?!"

Nami grinned widely and pushed until he was far enough out that his legs couldn't reach the floor anymore, "Giving you directions even you can follow!" Avoiding his kicking legs, she wiggled his swords until they were angled out the window too.

"Dammit, stop—"

She grinned and placed her foot against his butt and said triumphantly, "Go straight down!"

Then she shoved him the rest of the way out with a laugh.

Her grin softened.

I'm not like him at all.

He stared at the students holding his arms. Are they crazy?! If they give me up to Pirate Hunter then I'm going to die! He turned to the teacher and wheedled, "Er… Robin-sensei! Robin-sensei! You can't let anything happen to a student, right? Shouldn't we wait for the, uh, for the student police officers?"

Robin turned the hat slowly in her hands, voice light as she replied, "You are the one who shot him down, Sniper-kun." She smiled with disarming sweetness, "I've heard this Pirate Hunter uses three swords." She gestured vaguely at her black skirt and purple sweater-vest as she started picking her way around the rubble toward the kid who fell, "How do you expect me to stop him with no weapon?" Her voice drifted faintly over her shoulder as she wondered almost to herself, "Maybe if he cuts you in two then we can give half to the student police…"

Usopp shrank back against the students holding him, eyes wide, "AHHH! NO WAY!" What kind of teacher are you?! He turned to look at the students around him again, "Hey, come on, you can't seriously be thinking about offering me as a—as a sacrifice, can you?"

They merely turned their gazes away and whistled to themselves, ignoring him completely. Usopp felt panic gripping him. He jerked his shoulders back, trying to dislodge their grips as he snarled, "What kind of friends are you?!"

"Dammit, stop—"

Usopp caught the flash of motion from the second-floor window and his eyes followed the dark shape until it landed in a heap between Robin and the kid with the broken neck.

Coby smiled, inspecting the bandages the first-year had just finished wrapping around his wrist and forearm, "Good! But you want to wrap it tighter. Here, let me demonstrate, hand me the roll…"

Rika handed him the roll with an embarrassed smile, "I'm really no good at medical stuff, Coby-kun. Honestly, I'm more interested in cooking…"

Coby rubbed at his head with his free hand sheepishly as he took the roll of bandages, "Oh, you're not so bad!" She flinched just the tiniest bit and he paused, then abruptly waved his hands in front of him, "I mean at the bandages! Not you—I mean you're not bad either—" Her hand flew over her mouth, mirth crinkling the corners of her eyes, and Coby's eyes widened, "Ah, no, that's not—that didn't come out right—"

"HELP! HELP! HE KILLED THE KID WITH THE ST—"

The door slammed open so hard that it bounced off the wall behind it and swung back to smack the student who had opened it in the face. He grabbed at his suddenly bleeding nose with a howl, tears pricking at his eyes.

Coby leapt up from the table and rushed forward, "Are you okay?!" He ripped a wad of bandage off the roll and held it out, "Here, hold it to your nose…"

The student took it gratefully, then mumbled, "I's urgen', da kid wid da draw…" He stopped and scowled, squeezing his eyes shut and mouthing the words more deliberately, "The. Kid. With. The. Straw. Hat. Died! He was. Shot down from. The roof!"

Coby's heart fluttered in his chest, "That's… That's impossible! Impossible! Im—"

He froze. Was it, though? How many enemies had Luffy-senpai made since starting at the school, anyway? Alvida, Buggy, Morgan, even Helmeppo…

"Coby-kun?"

His shoulders straightened and he turned to Rika, who was hovering half out of her chair uncertainly, "Rika-san, I need you to go round up the other officers immediately! Do you know where everyone is stationed today?"

She stood completely and nodded, lips firming, "Yes! I'll get everyone." She strode out the door, but paused and placed a hand on the doorframe, eyes flicking between Coby and the other student, "Where should we meet you, though?"

Coby grabbed the student's shoulders, "Where is he? Where is Luffy-senpai?"

The student squinted at him, eyes blinking the tears from his eyes, "At… At the training field…"

"Got it!" Rika waved and jogged off, shoes rapping out a steady ta-tap ta-tap that faded quickly.

Coby turned his determined frown back to the student, "Take me to him!"

That damn witch! I swear I'm going to throttle her. What kind of backwater town did she grow up in? Kicking people out of windows… Zoro kept trying to suck air in, knowing it would only be a few more seconds before the breath that got knocked out of him retur—he inhaled deeply and immediately started rattling off curses, voice growing louder with every coughing breath.

"Oh my." There was a chuckle above him and then the voice continued, "You certainly have the right vocabulary for a Pirate Hunter."

He blinked and squinted up, "Ah?"

The shadow cast by the building made it easier to make out the features of the woman bent over him, enough indirect light behind her that she was illuminated just fine without blinding him. She tilted her head, her dark ponytail sliding over one shoulder as she asked, "Are you alright?"

Zoro's eyes flicked over her quickly. Mid to late twenties, so probably a teacher here. He didn't recognize her, so she was likely new, possibly the replacement they'd gotten for Morgan, but… Based on the look in her eyes, she was no stranger to violence. He'd even go so far as to bet she'd killed before, despite the peaceful aura she gave off. Killing left a stain one could never quite hide.

How interesting.

He saw understanding flit through her eyes and knew she could tell what he was thinking. But she just gave him a small smile, one that said 'and isn't it terrible?' and offered him a hand, "Do you need help up?"

He sat up, brushing her assistance off, "No, I'm good…" Now that he wasn't lying flat he could see the rest of her clearly, and in her other hand was Luffy's hat. His brows pulled down in a deep frown.

Large blue eyes blinked behind her glasses and she pointed past him with her other hand, "It's his, isn't it?"

Zoro looked where she was pointing off to his right and scrambled to his feet, "Dammit! Luffy!"

"PIRATE HUNTER-SAMA!"

He jerked to a stop and spun with a scowl, "What?"

Three students were approaching him, holding someone else between them. They stumbled closer and halted between him and Luffy, all four of them trembling.

"W—W—We—" The student gulped, "This is the student responsible for—for—" He started to turn to look over his shoulder, but clenched his eyes shut and kept facing Zoro, "He's the one who did it!"

They shoved the boy between them forward and he went down on his knees, arms held out to either side. "He—Hey, you jerks, what do you think you're doing to the great Captain Usopp-sama?!" He grinned smugly, sweat racing down his neck, "My subordinates won't stand for this! They'll find you and fill your beds with cockroaches and sprinkle rat poop in your food! Don't think you'll be safe from my eight thousand men!"

Zoro raised a brow. Unfortunately, the kid's claim was entirely ruined by his shaking legs.

It was a decent effort, though.

But he didn't care, because right now they were between him and his captain and that wasn't acceptable. He rested a hand on the hilts of his swords and said, voice low, "Get out of the way."

The students holding the 'great Captain Usopp-sama' all flinched, but rather than obey him, they all seemed to crowd closer and one of them shouted, "Please! We've brought you the troublemaker! Spare the rest of us!"

"HEY!" Usopp struggled in their grip, curly hair bouncing where it wasn't trapped by the green bandana wrapped over the top of his head. "How dare you treat me this way! It wasn't my fault!"

Zoro felt a tic beginning in his forehead. He turned to face them more fully, shifting his feet a little farther apart, fingers subconsciously wrapping around Wado Ichimonji's white hilt. He could see the dark-haired teacher moving in his peripheral vision as she made her way around to Luffy. Which is where he should be going. He glared at the students in front of him, "Move."

Usopp—if that was his real name—gulped audibly, but then suddenly clenched his teeth and said, "Don't think my men will forgive you if you hurt me, Pirate Hunter! But if you let me go now then I'll make sure they leave you alone!"

One of the students shook Usopp and spat out, "Don't make light of Pirate Hunter-sama's righteous anger!"

Honestly, why was no one listening? Zoro was about to reply, but paused and watched the teacher crouch next to Luffy, her body blocking his view of his captain. She lowered her head as if to check something—breathing, maybe?

And then she sat back up and her shoulders started shaking, one hand raising to her mouth, as if—

—as if she was crying.

No. He can't actually be dead, can he? Zoro stared over the students' heads, breath stilling. The kid couldn't be more than what, sixteen? He'd survived Alvida and Buggy, could hold his own barehanded in a fight with Zoro, but had just died from falling off the roof because he was napping? Because he was shot down by this kid?

Zoro eyed Usopp and stepped closer and the boy's stream of warnings cut off abruptly. Usopp's eyes were wide and he let out a squeal when Zoro drew his sword and rested it on Usopp's shoulders, turning the blade toward the kid's neck. Zoro raised his chin, "Have you said your prayers, 'Captain' Usopp?"

He could feel the quivers shuddering from Usopp's shoulder through his sword. The kid's voice was barely more than a whisper as he muttered, "… Please…" He blinked and jerked back suddenly and shouted, "NO! DON'T KILL ME! IT WASN'T MY FAULT! YOU CAN'T DO THIS!"

Zoro gave him a hungry grin and started to draw his sword back a bit for room to—

"ZORO-SENPAI!"

He staggered a step to the side as something slammed into him and nearly yanked his sword from his hand. He tightened his grip automatically and braced to take the extra weight, eyes drawn down to see—"What the hell?"

There was a lot of pink there.

"Coby?"

Coby glared up at him, light reflecting briefly off his glasses. His arms were fastened around Zoro's, one hand trying to tug the sword from his grip and the other at the crook of his elbow and pulling backward. He was pressed against Zoro's side and hooked one leg behind Zoro's for leverage as he said, "Zoro-senpai, what are you doing?! You can't just kill another student!"

Zoro's brow creased and he half-yelled back, "What are you talking about?"

Coby pulled a little harder, using his leg as leverage to force Zoro's arm back some more, "Luffy-senpai wouldn't want this!"

Zoro twitched his shoulder, trying to shake Coby off, "What are you talking about?"

They both blinked when they heard a yawn.

"Wheeeeew! That was a good nap!"

They turned disbelieving stares to Luffy, who was sitting cross-legged on the ground and stretching his arms over his head. He yawned again and rubbed at his closed eyes sleepily as he faced them both and asked with a faint whine, "What's going on? Why is everyone being so loud?"

Luffy opened his eyes when he received nothing but dead silence. He swiveled his gaze over them blankly, finally coming to a stop on where Zoro and Coby were still tangled together.

He glanced up at the teacher when she chuckled and stood, then held out his hat. "Is this yours?"

"Hey! My hat!" Luffy snatched it from her and turned it, running his hands over it quickly. He slapped it on his head and grinned up at her from beneath the brim, "Thanks!"

She chuckled again and replied with an amused smile, "No problem."

No way.

Usopp stared.

There's no way he survived that fall.

He blinked, but the scene didn't change.

Pirate Hunter slapped his palm over his face and sighed out, "Luffy…"

The kid with the straw hat—Luffy, he supposed—just grinned impishly.

The student police officer was still holding Zoro's arm back, eyes wide before he sighed and shook his head, "I'm glad you're alright, Luffy-senpai." Luffy chuckled and the officer gave him a long-suffering smile.

The door burst open again and more student police officers came pouring out, fanning along the building as they took everything in. One of the girls stepped forward hesitantly, "Uh, Coby-kun… What's going on?"

Coby glanced at her, "Oh, Rika-san…" He paused, then flinched and started disentangling himself from Pirate Hunter. Once he was free he stood ramrod straight, shoulders thrown back, and faced Luffy, "Luffy-senpai! I think it would be best if we went back to our office to sort this out." He gave Pirate Hunter a stern look, "You too, Zoro-senpai."

Zoro merely glanced at Luffy, who smiled. Zoro smirked in response, then sheathed his sword in one fluid motion with a shrug, dropping his elbow to rest on the hilts comfortably.

Coby scanned over Usopp's classmates, lingering on Usopp for a moment before turning toward Robin, "Sensei, would you mind coming as well? I'd like to get the full story on how this started."

She smiled calmly at him and inclined her head, "Of course, Officer-kun."

Usopp held still. Maybe if she was going then he wouldn't be called out—

Coby pointed at Usopp, "And you too, please. You seem to be involved."

Crap! Usopp glared up at his classmates as they released him, then turned a weak grin to Coby, "I don't really need to come, right? I really think you can get the full story with everyone else—"

He thrashed as someone lifted him by the back of his jacket, but stilled immediately when he heard Zoro say from over him, "You're coming."

Coby eyed Zoro, but eventually turned toward the building and said, "Please follow me."

Usopp flinched as Zoro dropped him to his feet and prodded him in the back with a finger. He sighed and let his head hang before he started shuffling after the others slowly.

"I'm sorry for the false alarm, everyone. I think I have this handled now though, so you can return to your stations," Coby said as he pulled a blank report form from the desk drawer.

He caught a few disappointed looks, but Rika rolled her eyes and started herding everyone out, sticking her tongue out at him as she shut the door. Coby sat down with a sigh, placing his forearms on the desk and leaning over the paper. He scanned the room for a moment before settling his gaze on the woman sitting in the chair on the other side of the desk, "Sensei…"

"Robin," she supplied.

Coby paused. That sounded like a first name, which was unusual for the teachers here. He wrote her name down in the report swiftly as he asked, "Robin-sensei, would you be able to tell me how this all started?"

She gave him a courteous smile, "Certainly, Officer-kun. I took the students outside for a lesson on the history of the Academy. I thought doing a tour in this gorgeous weather would get my class interested." She lifted her hand from where it had been resting on her crossed legs and waved vaguely, "After our tour, I let the class have the rest of the period to spend outside in the training field and they were mostly chatting amongst themselves…" She cocked her head with a shrug and a tiny smile, her eyes on Coby's scrawling pen as she finished, "Sniper-kun shot at the roof and I believe that's when Straw Hat-kun fell."

Zoro snorted, but merely shook his head and sighed quietly when Coby glanced at him. Coby frowned, then turned to the only student he didn't know, "Are you… ah… Sniper-senpai?"

There was a panicked flash across the boy's features, then he stood from his chair next to Robin's and planted his foot on the seat. He thrust his chest forward and hooked a thumb at it proudly, "That's right, I am the great Captain Usopp-sama! The greatest sniper this world has ever seen!"

Greatest sniper…? Coby pushed his glasses up and considered for a moment, hand raising to his chin as he frowned thoughtfully at the desk, "It was quite windy today, and the school roof isn't a short distance…" He tapped the pen against his fingers and looked at Usopp with appreciation, "That had to have been a hell of a shot."

Usopp grinned widely, eyes sparkling, "Right?!" He whipped a slingshot out and pulled the sling back, squinting and aiming at the windows behind Coby, "I aimed for the seventeenth seam between the slabs of concrete from the east side of the building and hit it dead center." He spun slowly until he was aiming at Zoro and he grinned, "I never miss my mark!"

Zoro cocked a single brow and Usopp gulped, hands snapping back to his sides as he spun to face Coby and sat down again. Coby sighed and shot Zoro a stern glance over Usopp's head, but the swordsman merely smirked. Coby dragged his eyes to the left of the room toward Luffy, "Luffy-senpai, how did you get tangled up in this?"

Luffy grinned widely and braced his hands on the edge of the table he was sitting on, leaning forward and kicking his legs absently, "I was taking a nap!"

Coby stared blankly at him, "I… Don't… See how that's relevant…?"

Zoro's exasperated voice filled in quietly from where he was leaning on the table on the opposite side of the room, "What the idiot is leaving out is that we were on the roof, Coby."

Coby grimaced and whined, "Zoro-senpai! Luffy-senpai!" He pointed at the grinning teen with his pen, "You know the roof is off-limits! And you!" He turned the pen to Usopp, who was staring suspiciously at Luffy. The other boy glanced at him when he realized he was being addressed and Coby continued, "You should know better than to use weapons on Academy property without supervision, someone could have gotten hurt! And you destroyed Academy property, too!" Coby slumped in his chair and stared at his report glumly, "Now I have to write all three of you up!"

Usopp threw his hands up, "Woah, woah, wait a second!" He smiled apprehensively, "We don't need to write anybody up, right?" He glanced back at Luffy's curious stare and said to him, "Right? Nobody actually got hurt." He suddenly sat up a little straighter and turned back to Coby with a sly grin, "And I was supervised! Robin-sensei was there!"

Coby glared at him, "Don't try to put the blame on Robin-sensei, Usopp-senpai. You know only combat-certified teachers are allowed to supervise weapons use."

Robin cleared her throat gently, waiting until Coby shot her a surprised glance before she said, "Actually, Officer-kun, I am combat-certified."

Usopp turned wide eyes to her, "You are?!" She smiled at him, eyes twinkling, and Usopp stuttered, "O—Of course you are!" He placed his hands on his hips confidently, "Hahaha! Exactly why I felt it was safe to use my weapon!"

Coby asked uncertainly, "... Are you sure you're okay with taking responsibility for his actions, Robin-sensei? The punishment he'd receive just for the property damage alone is no joke, and they may come down harder on you for not stopping him…"

Robin flashed him a poignant smile, a gleam of defiance in her eyes as she replied, "Yes, Officer-kun, I am aware. I was there to supervise him, so I am fully willing to take the blame for not preventing Sniper-kun's actions. He was my responsibility at the time, after all."

Usopp's jaw dropped, "That's…" He swallowed and placed his clenched fists on his knees, bowing deeply from his seat, "Th—Thank you, Robin-sensei!"

She inclined her head, "You're very welcome, Sniper-kun."

Coby sighed quietly, setting the tip of his pen against the page in front of him, "Well, if you're sure, Robin-sensei…" He glanced up at her over the rim of his glasses and she simply smiled, so he reluctantly scribbled the information down. Once he was done he looked back up and considered each of them until his eyes came to rest on Luffy again.

"Luffy-senpai…"

Luffy cocked his head curiously, gaze open and waiting.

Coby quirked his lips to the side, "How did you survive the fall? That was a seven-story drop, and the way you landed looked… Well…" He shrugged and shook his head, "Does it have anything to do with you not having wounds after getting shot a couple of weeks ago?"

Luffy chuckled and grinned widely, "I'm a rubber man!" He hooked a finger in his cheek and pulled and the skin stretched a good foot and a half away from his jaw before he let it snap back into place.

Coby blinked, "Rubber?" And then it clicked and he shot out with amazement, "Did you take Devil Fruit?"

"Yup! Two pills!"

"YOU'RE A DEVIL FRUIT USER?!" Usopp was crouched behind his chair, legs quivering, slingshot at the ready and aimed at Luffy.

Luffy's smile was full of mischief, but before he could do or say anything Robin turned to look at him over the back of her chair and asked curiously, "Only two pills? Why not all five?"

Luffy pouted faintly, "I only found two. I thought they were candy, but then I put them in my mouth and they tasted teeeerrrrrrrrible!"

Robin chuckled, one hand raising to her lips, "They do taste terrible, don't they?"

Zoro perked up, shifting to cross his ankles, "You say that like you know. Have you taken Devil Fruit?"

Robin waved her arm and three more sprouted from the crook of her elbow before disappearing into flower petals, "Indeed I have. I've taken all five."

Luffy leaned forward some more, practically leaning over the top of Robin's chair, "Ooh, your power is cool!"

She smiled up at him, "Why, thank you, Straw Hat-kun."

"EEE!"

They both turned to look at Usopp, who had flattened himself against the wall opposite them. "St—St—Stay back!" He lifted his slingshot, the weapon perfectly steady despite his shaking legs. He scooted along the wall toward Coby, "W—Why would a teacher at this Academy be a Devil Fruit user?!" He pointed accusingly at Luffy, "Or a student, for that matter!"

Robin's dark ponytail swayed behind her head as she tilted it to the side, "Quite a few of the teachers at this Academy have Devil Fruit powers, Sniper-kun." She gave him an edged smile, "Even Sengoku-sama does, the principal of the school and Fleet Admiral of the Navy."

"That's right!" Coby said, sitting forward eagerly. "Admiral Akainu, Admiral Borsalino, and Admiral Aokiji are all Devil Fruit users too!"

Robin's expression faltered, but Coby wondered if he'd imagined it because the next second she was smiling softly and nodding, "That's right, all three of them. Although Admiral Borsalino is the only one who is currently teaching here."

Usopp lowered his weapon, eyes widening, "Really?!" Coby nodded fervently to him and Usopp's shoulders dropped, "What?! How are us normal people supposed to compete with Devil Fruit users? This is blasphemy!" He held his hand up at Luffy as if to halt him, "I call foul!"

Luffy started laughing, rocking back on the desk, "Hahaha! You're funny!" He sat forward again, bracing one hand on his knee, eyes playful as he continued, "I like you! Join my pirate crew!"

Usopp stared blankly at him, "… What?" Luffy's gaze didn't waver, so Usopp rolled his eyes and tucked his slingshot back into its holster at his waist and started walking back to his chair, "Oh haha, very funny. Great joke." He crossed his arms and remained standing by his chair as he eyed Luffy.

Both of Luffy's brows climbed slightly, then narrowed, "Joke?" He glanced at Zoro with puzzlement, who huffed a laugh and crossed his arms over his chest as he replied, "As ridiculous as it sounds, he's not joking." He jerked his chin at Luffy, unable to suppress his own smirk as he continued, "For better or worse, this idiot is my captain." Luffy grinned again, teeth flashing.

Usopp glanced between them and Luffy caught his eye and said, "We've got a navigator, too!"

"Really?" Usopp blinked, a faint frown marring his features. "But wait… If you're going to be a pirate…" He gestured with open arms at the building around them, "… then why are you at the World Justice Academy?"

"I'm not going to be just a pirate. I'm going to be the Pirate King!"

Usopp scowled, "What? That's crazy!" He turned to look behind him at Coby's heavy sigh, who shook his head before facing Usopp and saying, "Luffy-senpai will pursue his dream no matter where he is."

Usopp's mouth parted and his eyes flicked thoughtfully from one boy to another. Then he closed his eyes with a smug smile and said, "Oh, I guess I can be on your pirate crew…" He held up a finger, "But on one condition! I get to be the captain!"

Luffy frowned deeply, "No way! I'm the captain!"

Usopp leapt onto the ladder at the foot of Johnny and Yosaku's bunk bed, one hand wrapped around a wrung and the other held over his eyes as if shielding his gaze from the sun. "And then I looked to the west, and I saw a shape framed by the setting sun!" He lowered his voice, the others leaning closer to hear him, "And lo and behold…" He met each of their eyes individually, "What did I see, but…" He waited for them to lean even closer, preparing his victims for the best part—

—the window slammed open right behind him and Usopp leapt clear over Yosaku's head with a shout, "AHHHHH! WHO'S THERE?!" Johnny and Yosaku both ducked and screamed, but Luffy merely grinned and then ignored them all completely as he turned his alert gaze to the window. Usopp scrambled across the room to the other bed and managed to wedge himself behind Zoro as the man sat up and drew his sword halfway from its sheath, one foot already on the floor.

Luffy leaned sideways to get a better view of the window around the foot of the bunk, head tilted curiously. He stared for a moment at the hunched figure and then asked, "Nami?"

"Who—Who's that?" Usopp kept his weapon aimed, but he let the loaded sling slacken as he squinted more closely at the shape. Orange hair, Academy jacket and tie and skirt… Usopp lowered his slingshot completely, "Oh. Oh, is that the navigator you were talking about?"

Zoro sighed and sheathed his sword, grumbling under his breath as he stood and walked toward the window, "Do you always have to come in like that? " He ran a hand over his short hair and scowled as he came closer and asked more loudly, "Can't you take the door? What do you want, witch?"

Nami smirked, but her face was pale and her voice low as she breathed out, "Doors are for suckers, meathead."

And then her eyes rolled up and she slumped through the window, her head making a sickening crack as it hit the floor.

Zoro's eyes widened, "Wha…"

"Nami!"

Luffy scrambled toward her. Zoro took two last strides until he was close enough to crouch by her side, hands hovering uncertainly over her curled body.

"Nami! Are you okay? Hey, Nami!" Luffy reached forward to pat her face gently, but she didn't respond. He glanced at Zoro with panic, "What do we do?"

Usopp took a few steps closer, "Hey, is she okay?" Johnny and Yosaku both climbed onto the lower bunk and peered over the edge at Nami, "Aniki? What happened to Nami-nee-san?" Usopp leaned over Zoro's shoulder for a better view, brow wrinkling with concern.

Zoro suddenly dropped his gaze to the floor in front of him and went still, "Luffy…"

Usopp and Luffy both looked down and Usopp gulped. That was a lot of blood. There was a shift in the air and he glanced nervously at Luffy. The other boy had gone still as well, his intent stare following the quickly growing pool back to Nami's body.

Zoro leaned forward and very gently lifted Nami's Academy jacket off her stomach, only to find her hand slapped over her side and blood not only leaking between her fingers but also from slices along the back of her hand. He reached out and pulled her hand away to reveal two thick cuts along her palm and several wide, red slices tracing her left side from her lower ribs to her stomach.

Usopp's gasp was the only sound in the heavy silence and he whispered, "Her hands… Those… Those are defensive wounds, aren't they?"

His words set something loose. Zoro growled and stood, one hand falling to grip the hilt of his white sword as he jumped out the window onto the fire escape, head on a swivel. His fingers clenched as he said over his shoulder, "No one's out here." He placed a hand on the railing and leaned over it, "It didn't happen here, but…" He turned to look at Luffy, "There's a trail."

Usopp glanced down to find Luffy's head bowed, eyes hidden by the brim of his hat. He was silent for several moments, then reached forward and laid the Academy jacket back over Nami's side. His voice was quiet as he said, "Usopp, help me pick her up."

Usopp scrambled forward and helped maneuver Nami carefully into his open arms, the both of them trying to cause as little extra damage as possible. Zoro made his way back into the room but kept his gaze trained on the window. Once Nami was settled, Luffy stood swiftly and turned to Johnny and Yosaku, voice urgent, "Where's the nearest hospital?"

Johnny leaped up from the bed, "Twelve blocks south! We can take you there—"

"No…"

Luffy's eyes widened and he glanced down, "Nami! You're awake. We're going to get you to a hospital, you're going to be fi—"

Nami slid a hand across her stomach to hook her fingers into the buttoned seam of Luffy's Academy shirt, "No…"

Luffy paused, "No?"

Nami turned her head as if trying to shake it, "Under… Only…"

Luffy gave her a puzzled frown, "Under? What's under?"

Nami pulled in a tired breath, eyelids fluttering, "Underground… Doctor…"

Usopp leaned forward and asked quietly, "Nami? Is there a specific doctor you want to go to?"

She didn't reply. Usopp met Luffy's eyes, then reached forward to touch Nami's shoulder, "Nami? Are you awake?" She still didn't respond, though. Usopp dragged his hands down his face, "Oh no! What do we do?! I don't know of any underground doctors!"

Luffy looked up at Zoro with worry, but the swordsman barely turned to glance over his shoulder before he shook his head. Luffy grimaced, eyes flicking from Nami to the window to the door and back. He closed his eyes and whined, "Ahhh." He quirked his mouth to the side, eyes dropping back to Nami as he muttered almost to himself, "We have to get her help, but I don't know where else to take her. I don't know where Coby lives!"

"Coby… Coby the student police officer?" Usopp spun to look askance at Zoro, "Why would he be able to help?"

Zoro ignored him and looked at Luffy with a grimace, "He doesn't have the training for this, Luffy."

Luffy didn't bother to reply and Usopp dropped his head and rubbed at his hair vigorously, "Ahh! Crap!" He looked back up, gaze flicking between Luffy and Zoro, and raised his hands in a shrug, "What do we do? Do we just take her to the hospital?"

The three of them stared uncertainly at each other in silence until Yosaku mumbled, "There is that one doctor…"

All three turned to him hopefully and Johnny grimaced from beside him, "You don't mean that one?"

Yosaku nodded sagely, "She's the only one I know of."

Luffy stepped forward eagerly, "You know an underground doctor?"

Johnny and Yosaku traded a look and Johnny replied hesitantly, "Yeeees… But… Well…" He shrugged helplessly, "Her prices…"

Luffy stepped closer, Johnny leaning back as blood trickled down Luffy's shirt and dropped to the floor.

Luffy's gaze was fierce, "Take us!"

It was warm and soft and there was a gentle rhythmic thwump in her dreams that soothed her. Nami drifted out of the full, heavy haze of unconsciousness slowly, each moment bringing with it a little more awareness. Her breath, her throat, the weight on top of her…

A raspy voice musing quietly, "Oh, you're finally awake."

Brown eyes flew open and Nami sat up.

Or tried to, at least. She bit down on a scream, so much fire in her side that she couldn't even react to the hand shoving her left shoulder back into the bed. Nami gasped and tried to curl in on herself, fighting back the tears at the heat ripping across her stomach.

"Stop."

Nami's muscles froze, her body happy to listen to any commands that weren't just wails of agony.

"Relax."

She took a measured breath through her nose and blew it out slowly past lips she suddenly realized were dry. She did it again. And again. And again. She squeezed her eyes shut against the tears still trying to leak out, the flames that were flaring up her side finally diminishing to a dull roaring ache.

The woman sighed, "Good." She removed her hand from Nami's left shoulder.

Her bare left shoulder.

Her bare tattooed left shoulder.

Her bandage-no-longer-hiding-it tattooed left shoulder.

Her eyes flew open again and she caught sight of a skinny older woman hovering over her. Nami swung her legs out.

Tried. Tried to swing her legs out.

She let loose a cry at the renewed rawness this time, the muscles in her chest spasming in pain.

The woman grabbed her legs and slid them firmly back under the sheets as she grumbled lowly, "Hold still. Good grief, child."

Nami slapped a hand over the tattoo on her shoulder and cracked an eye open to glare at the woman, though all she saw was a blend of gray and purple and black as tears filled her vision. She blinked furiously to get them out of the way.

"Hm?" The woman eyed her, gaze eventually drawing to the hand she had slapped over her shoulder. She grinned and leaned down, her purple-and-orange jacket draping over Nami's chest as Nami twitched away from the hand the woman planted on the bed next to her. The woman patted Nami's cheek with her other hand, "Don't worry about that, girlie. No one saw it but me and I don't give a rat's ass who you are as long as I get paid."

Nami continued to glare suspiciously at her and the woman chuckled, standing back up and walking to the counter near the foot of the bed. She grabbed something and tossed it and Nami caught it purely on instinct. She stared in confusion at the roll of bandages.

"If you're so worried about it then we can cover it back up before I bring your friends in here."

Nami heard the woman stroll back to the bed, heels clicking like she had boots on, and then the mattress sank on her right and the woman snatched the roll back, "I'll do it. You just lay there and look pathetic, it'll only take a moment."

Nami scowled, but didn't protest as the woman tugged her arm out from under the blanket and set to work. It really was just a few moments, and then she was tying off the bandage and bracing a hand behind her on the mattress as she leaned back and said, "So. I'm sure you have questions. Hit me."

Nami shifted, but paused when the woman held up a finger, "No sitting up. You can ask questions lying down just as easily."

Nami huffed and wiggled her shoulders, twisting her head until she had a better view of the woman before she asked with no small measure of hostility, "Who are you?"

The woman gave her a wide, sly smile, "Doctorine, at your service. The best damn doctor this side of the Red Line."

Nami's eyes flitted over the room, picking out the jars and vials and herbs. Fine. That was feasible. She ran her hand lightly over the blanket over her stomach, "What happened?" She frowned, only just noticing that both of her hands were bandaged, "How did I get here?"

Doctorine's eyebrows raised, "I was hoping you could tell me. Your injuries were serious. The poison laced into the blades is unusual in this part of the world." Nami just continued staring at her, so Doctorine shrugged, "All I know is that your friends showed up with you three nights ago"—she pointed at Nami—"covered in your blood, and asked me to help."

Nami's brow wrinkled, "Friends?" She couldn't remember much after she'd been stabbed. She'd managed to stash the money, but after that it was murky…

Doctorine grinned widely, "Oh yes. You had quite the escort. They looked rather bloodthirsty, in fact. I wondered if they were the ones who did this to you, but they looked so panicked and out of their depth that I figured probably not." Her smile morphed into something sly, eyes sliding to look at Nami sidelong, "The one with the straw hat was particularly interesting…"

Nami flushed. Oh, those friends.

How had they found her? She… She didn't go to them, did she? Injured?

No. There was no way. She didn't have that kind of trust in anyone.

Are you sure about that?

She pursed her lips. Yes. She was absolutely sure of that.

Nami blinked, banishing the thoughts. She let her eyes drift to the slowly turning ceiling fan, tracing its blades in the air as she said, "You said they used poison." She struggled and failed to bury the vanity that prompted her to continue weakly, "What's the damage?"

Doctorine laughed, the sound broken enough to be called a cackle. She took a moment to catch her breath and replied, "The blades were laced with curare, so they didn't fester the wounds, if that's what you're asking about. If you rest properly and are careful then the scars shouldn't be very noticeable. I stitched them up nice and tight." She patted Nami's leg through the blanket, voice lowering, "Honestly, you're lucky there wasn't more poison in you. If they'd gotten a solid stab in then you would've lost motor function much earlier." She eyed Nami, "I suspect they wouldn't have stopped with one strike."

Nami felt a shiver make its way through her body. Doctorine lifted her hand from her leg and raised it in a shrug, "But they didn't and you were fortunate enough to get here."

Doctorine stood and placed her hands on her hips, "You seem plenty coherent. Your friends have refused to leave until you wake up and I'm tired of them sleeping on my floor." She strolled to the door and winked back at Nami as she grabbed the handle, "I hope you're prepared."

Nami had enough time to open her mouth for a protest before Doctorine swung the door open and bellowed, "SHE'S AWAKE!"

Nami could hear several voices shouting, but Luffy's was definitely the loudest as he cried eagerly, "NAMIIIIIIIII!"

She couldn't resist the tired grin that pulled at the corners of her lips and just listened to the pound of footsteps and echoing laughter as what sounded like a herd of beasts made its way through the house.

Luffy and someone else came tumbling through the door, the two of them pulling at each other playfully. The kid she didn't know grabbed the skin at Luffy's temple and pulled.

And pulled and kept pulling. Nami's eyes widened at how far Luffy's skin stretched. That shouldn't—

Ahaaaaa. Who'd have thought the kid had taken Devil Fruit?

"Getting shot. How did you avoid it?"

"Oh!" Luffy grinned. "I didn't. He hit me right in the forehead."

Maybe he hadn't been lying after all.

Luffy's skin snapped back and he shoved the other boy away enough to scramble to his knees and grab the edge of the bed. His eyes were bright under his straw hat as he said, "Nami! You're awake!"

Nami smiled, "That's right. I heard I have you all to thank for bringing me here?"

The other boy popped his head over Luffy's shoulder and smiled, "Yeah! Luffy carried you all the way here! His shirt was completely soaked in bloo—Hey!" He flailed wildly, Luffy's arms pinwheeling as Doctorine grabbed the collars of their shirts and dragged them back a few steps. She dumped them on the floor, "Give her some space, you idiots!"

Nami chuckled weakly, wincing at the twinge in her side. Luffy and the other boy both looked at her and their mouths made little 'o's, then they sat cross-legged on the floor where they'd been dropped and grinned at her.

The boy with the green bandana jerked a thumb at his chest proudly, "I'm Captain Usopp! We haven't met yet, but I'm the captain of the crew now!"

"Hey!" Luffy fisted a hand in Usopp's shirt and shook him, "I told you already, I'm the captain!"

Usopp grinned smugly, eyes raising to stare at the ceiling as he shook his head, "What am I going to do with your delusions of grandeur, Luffy? There's no way you can be the captain!"

Luffy growled, raising his other fist, but paused when Zoro appeared in the doorway and leaned on the frame, crossing one leg in front of the other. He gave Nami a smirk, "So the witch is awake. That's too bad, I was hoping you were out of our hair for good."

The words stung. Not because he meant them, because she could deal with that just fine. They stung because he didn't mean them, and that was new and opened something unexpectedly raw in her because she was glad he didn't mean them.

Nami buried the sensation and shot him an arrogant smile in return, "Really? I seem to remember a certain swordsman being rather worried about me."

Which she didn't actually remember. But his blush was so worth the gamble. As was his growled, "Shut up!"

She started to laugh, then flinched as the movement pulled at her stitches, hand flying to her stomach on instinct.

"Hey, hey…" Usopp raised a hand toward her, then smiled anxiously and asked, "What happened, anyway? You were pretty hurt when you showed up."

Showed up? Darn. So she had gone to them with her injuries. How out of it was I? She pulled her other hand out from under the blankets and waved at them vaguely, "Oh, just some jerks who tried to mug me. I took care of them."

"No wayyyy!" Usopp placed a hand on his knee and leaned toward her, "That's so badass!"

Nami smiled to herself as she twisted to lay on her right side. Where had they found this kid? His innocence was kind of adorable.

Luffy's eyes focused on her shoulder and he asked, "I didn't think your shoulder was bleeding…"

Nami froze, but Doctorine's voice drifted over from the counter at the foot of the bed, raising a vial toward the light and swirling the liquid in it as she said absently, "It's from something else. I already took care of it."

Luffy glanced at her, "Oh." He hummed to himself, eyes drifting back to Nami. She was working up a lie when he smiled and said, "Okay." He scrambled to his feet with excitement, "Oh! Nami! You have to meet Chopper, he's awesome!" He turned toward the door and called, "CHOPPER! COME MEET NAMI!"

Something brown moved in the doorway and Zoro peered down curiously, "Isn't that backward?"

The little creature jumped and shuffled his body to actually hide behind Zoro's legs, only one half of his head visible now. Luffy laughed, "Chopper, come here!"

Chopper shook his head and Nami's eyes caught on his antlers. A pet? She met his eyes and smiled. Too much intelligence there for a pet. Another Devil Fruit user, maybe?

She wriggled her head on the pillow to push the fluff out of her field of view and then lifted a hand to wave lightly to him, "Hi there. I'm Nami."

Chopper's eyes went wide and he jerked behind Zoro's legs some more, then slowly leaned out until he could get one eye on her, "I—I'm Chopper."

Nami's eyes crinkled with restrained merriment, "Hi Chopper. It's nice to meet you."

Luffy spun excitedly, "Isn't he cool?!" His eyes twinkled impishly, "He's a raccoon-dog!"

Chopper leaped out from behind Zoro's legs and shouted furiously, "I'M A REINDEER!"

Luffy started laughing and Nami had to bite her lip as Chopper realized he was exposed and scrambled back behind Zoro's legs. Usopp grinned and leaned back, planting a hand on the ground behind him as he looked over his shoulder at Chopper, "Hey, come on, Chopper. Nami isn't going to try to eat you like Luffy did!"

Nami had to stamp out the urge to say 'how do you know?', choosing instead to smile kindly at the little reindeer. Chopper watched her warily, Zoro's eyes sliding sidelong to watch in amusement as Chopper took a few careful steps out from behind his legs. Satisfied that Nami wasn't going to suddenly leap on him, he crept into the room some more, though he was still keeping Luffy and Usopp between him and Nami.

That didn't last long. Luffy grabbed his arm and pulled him forward, ignoring his protests as he looked at Nami and said, "Chopper is awesome! He helps Doctorine with patients and is practically a doctor already!"

Chopper stared at Luffy in panic, using his free hoof to push at the older boy's grip on his arm.

Nami's head moved back a little in surprise, "Wow. Really?" Chopper glanced at her and she smiled again, "That's amazing!"

Chopper smiled and rubbed his hoof against his head sheepishly, body swaying back and forth, "Sh—Shut up! You're not making me happy with your praise! Stupid!"

Nami watched in confusion for a moment, then finally chuckled slowly, humor and pain mixing on her face.

There was a sudden sigh from the foot of the bed and Doctorine grumbled, "Alright, that's enough for today. You're wearing my patient out! Shoo!" She stepped forward and grabbed the back of Usopp's shirt and Zoro's eyes grew wide as she threw him straight at the swordsman.

"The he—"

The two went tumbling down the hall, Usopp's scream surprisingly high-pitched. Chopper dashed from the room after them, eyes wide as he looked back at Doctorine. The woman turned toward Luffy and took a step toward him, but he ducked her grab and danced around her.

"Nami!"

Nami watched as he continued dodging Doctorine's grabs, eyes on Nami as he said, "We'll be back tomorrow!"

"No you won't, you idiot! I don't want you clogging up my house anymore!" Doctorine managed to get her fingers in Luffy's yellow t-shirt, but he twisted and slipped out of her grip and dove between her legs, then scrambled out the door after Zoro and Usopp, laughter trailing behind him.

"Stay out of my house, you morons!" Nami couldn't see her face, but she could hear the smile in her voice as Doctorine finished, "I'll call you if anything changes!"

Luffy's laughter was the only response.

"… wasn't scared of me at all…"

Nami took a deep breath through her nose, jaw parting for a yawn.

"…nd school sounds really fun! They all go…"

She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and slit them open a crack, adjusting to the light.

"… want to go. He said I could join his crew—"

"Pah! School! School is for idiots. They do nothing but brainwash you with foolish concepts. Especially that one! The World Justice Academy is just a training camp for funneling people to the World Government and the Navy and making cannon fodder for us doctors to try to clean up."

Nami watched their backs as they continued working on some concoction at the counter near the foot of the bed and smiled wryly. Doctorine wasn't necessarily wrong.

"But Doctorine, Zoro said there's a medical—"

Doctorine slammed a vial onto the counter, "Bahhh, Luffy-this, Zoro-that." She planted a hand on her hip and turned to face Chopper, "I don't care what they said. The only school you need is right here, working on real patients and learning real medicine."

"You don't know that! I might learn something useful there!"

"Nothing good will come out of that place, Chopper!"

Chopper clenched his teeth, tears gathering in his eyes. He sniffled and bit out, "Luffy and Zoro and Usopp came out of there! They're good!"

Nami watched as he hopped off the stool he'd been standing on and raced out of the room.

"Chopper!" Doctorine called after him, stepping back from the counter to look down the hallway, but Chopper was already out of sight. She sighed and grumbled under her breath, "Leaving his work behind. What am I going to do with that fool."

She worked in silence for a few more minutes, then said over her shoulder, "Your friends stopped by earlier, but I told them not to wake you. They left you some stuff on the chair by the bed."

Nami leaned over the right side of the mattress, careful of the stitches in her left side, and looked at the chair. She stared in confusion, "What…" She reached out and grabbed the clothes, "Did they leave this? Or did you?" She let the fabric drop out and found herself holding a simple pale blue dress in her hands.

Doctorine placed her vial on the counter and turned, leaning her hips against the edge as she cackled and replied, "Oh, they left that."

Where in the world had they gotten a dress? It was suspiciously close to her size, too… She frowned at it, draping it across the bed and leaning over to grab the next item.

The leg holster for her bo staff. She ran her fingers over the supple leather. It had to have been drenched in blood and sweat, but it had been cleaned and waxed since. Her eyes drifted back to the chair and she picked up the pieces of her bo staff incredulously. These had definitely been coated in blood, mostly from her own hands. And yet they were so polished the wood shone.

Her heart thudded painfully. She'd dropped her bo staff on the ship she'd stolen from. How had—

No. No, there was no way they had figured out where she was. Yet there was no mistaking the wood in her hands, and if this was here then they'd been on that ship. And if they'd been on that ship, then they had to have found it because of her. And if they found it because of her…

She swallowed past the lump in her throat.

… If they had found it because of her, then they had to have beaten her attackers up to get the staff back. Those pirates were known for taking trophies and this would've made a good one for display with all the others she'd seen.

"The green-haired one cleaned those while they all waited for you to wake up."

Nami dragged wide eyes up to Doctorine. The woman smiled fondly and turned back to her vials at the counter, saying nonchalantly over her shoulder, "Spent hours on it."

Nami's fingers clenched reflexively around the wood and before she knew it she was saying, voice soft, "The World Justice Academy has a world-renowned medical program."

There was the barest hitch in Doctorine's movements, but the older woman didn't reply.

Nami laid back in the middle of the bed and pulled the comforter up some more, fingers running lightly over the wood in her hands. "Surely you know there's plenty he could learn from their teachers."

Doctorine gave a faint sigh and muttered, "Mind your own business, girlie."

Nami remained silent, fingers tracing over every familiar grain in each piece of her broken-down staff. The rhythmic motion was soothing and her breath slowed, eyes growing heavy.

She was just drifting off when she heard Doctorine say quietly, "I worry about my son taking care of himself. I don't want him to lose his way."

Nami felt herself smile.

But there's nothing to worry about. Luffy protects lost things.

She didn't realize she'd said it out loud.