Chapter 6

The picnic had been a few days ago and I could still live inside the blissful memory. The knowledge that we now lovers still sends a pleasurable shiver down my spine.

Sanji had volunteered for more night watch duties. Only to spent more time with me whenever that was possible. He even visited me during the day. But we still had to be careful, I didn't want to be discovered.

The ship was a strange quiet today. Normally there would be some kind of sound, but even the waives seemed muted. It made me feel uneasy. It was like a quiet moment before a storm would rage through.

But I didn't want to complain, it was rare for this silence to ring through the ship. I should enjoy it, not fear it.

I was right to fear the silence on this ship. She rocked from side to side at the sound of heavy objects hitting the water close by. I was thrown out of my little hiding space and slammed into the wall.

The slam made me feel dizzy and I tried my hardest to not let the black spots take me under. But every second that passed and the sound of a fight outside made it harder to keep myself calm.

I knew they crew were pirates and they could be hunted by other pirates or be arrested by the marines. I didn't know if they one of the other. I crawled back to behind the crates, pushing myself into the farther corner of the door. With my knees to my chest and a silent sob in my throat, I tried my hardest to not fear the outcome.

I knew the fear had come from my abandonment of the village. It wasn't natural to be cast out because of something you couldn't control. I still was fearful of the curse and what others thought of me. Sanji had shown me that it didn't matter that I carried a curse and tried to convince me time and time again that the crew wouldn't care as well.

With the thought of Sanji the fear subsided a bit and I found a way to keep myself calm.

I kept muttering my thoughts of what me and Sanji could do as a date on the next island. In a soft whisper I spoke to myself. "It would be fun to dine together. It would be fun to go sightseeing together. It would be amazing to cook dinner for the crew together."

I kept that little mantra up even after the sounds of the battle had waned. My words tripped over one another is haste. An endless word vomit fell from my lips.

A warm hand on my shoulder made me jump. I hadn't heard the door open. With blurry eyesight I looked up at the person in front of me. I could see blond hair and grey-blue eyes look at me worry. "Sanji?"

"Yes, it is me." He whispered softly. His other hand combed through my hair as he pulled me closer to him.

"What was that?" I asked between a silent hiccup, still a bit shook about the tumble I made and the fear that ran rampant inside me.

"Marines." Was the fast answer from Sanji.

I hummed with a nod of understanding, still curled inside his embrace. We stayed like that for a while, listening to the crew as they assessed and repaired the damage of the ship.

"Shouldn't you help?' I asked. The sound of the crew outside still made me a bit nervous about being discovered.

"I said I would check, and if needed clean, the storage room. They shouldn't come here for now."

"Let me help you put everything back in place." I offered as I had calmed down quite a bit.

"Very well." Sanji agreed after a moment of thought. I didn't shake anymore and my breathing had returned to normal.

As we both got to work, stacking boxes and righting other material. I stumbled onto a few pink flower petals. As I reached out to a dustpan to clean them, my eyes looked for a sweeper. When I turned back, they were gone. I blinked a few times in confusion, but shrugged my shoulders and moved on. I didn't have time to think about disappearing flower petals.

"I am almost finished on this side, Sanji." I said, as the last of the crate was returned to its rightful place.

"Same here." He replied, the broom still in hand. The last of the dust and glass shards were steeped up into a neat pile and deposit into a bin.

He placed the broom back and it looked like he just remembered something. "Oh, before I forget. Nami says we should be arriving at an island in a few days. She thinks this one is inhabited. We can go clothes shopping if you like?"

"I do agree with you that I may need some new clothes. I can't keep repairing the ones I wear and the skirt is quite impractical on a ship." I said with a nod, agreeing with his question.

"So, it's a date?" He asked with hesitance. I could tell from the way he looked at anything but me.

"Yes, it is a date." I affirmed with a smile. With gentle hands I turned his head back to me. His eyes locked with mine and I placed a gentle kiss on his lips. "We will have a date when we reach the island."

The way he lit up was amazing to see. From hesitance to a golden retriever. He was all bliss and he didn't care to show it. I snickered softly as Sanji almost floated out of the room, barely catching himself to not give my position away.

Now it was just me again, but the thought of a date did make the space feel less small.

***

The ship docked at the island and I could feel it hit the side of the wooden beams. It marked the beginning of my date with Sanji. I would wait for him to pick me up and he would be my escort for the day.

I knew he would explore the city first, get his tasks out of the way. So I had a while to myself to prepare and think of things I would like to buy.

I could fantasize about a few nice shirts and a beautifully embroidered jeans, but what I would like more than ever was a suit to match with Sanji. Or in any case a nice looking vest to go over a blouse.

The hours passed with ease as I lost myself to my thoughts, only getting pulled away from them by a single knock on the storage door. Sanji moved through the small crack he created. His head moved from left and right to find me.

I stood behind the door and awaited for him to enter the room. It didn't long for him to pass and called my name.

I stiffed a giggle and sneaked behind him. With a swift motion I placed a kiss on his cheek. "Welcome back." I said with a smile.

Sanji had jumped slightly at my sneak attack. He pulled inside his arms and peppered my face with sweet kisses. "That was not very nice." He murmured between kisses, but the smile was still bright on his lips.

I laughed softly at his demeanour. But pulled away after a short moment. "We have places to be, love."

"Ahh... You wound me, Mademoiselle." Sanji playfully complained. But he respected my wishes and lead the way towards the town.

The walk was not  and the atmosphere was comfortable. The first few shops and stalls came into view as we got closer to the towns centre. Small shops lined either side of the paved road. Stalls of many different things were set up before them, their merchants called to passerby's what they sold and preached 'they had the best wears'.

I just let their words fly over my head and focused more on the shops behind them.

My eyes landed on a quaint little shop behind a few crowed stalls. It's window deftly decorated with fabrics and pieces of clothing.

"Sanji," I called to the man at my side. But his eyes had never left my form, his entire attention was on me.

"Yes, Madam?"

"You see that shop in the distance. " I said, as I gestured to a green faced for the shop in the distance. "It interests me. I would love to take a look."

Sanji nodded and took the lead.

A little bell echoed through the small room as Sanji held the door open for me.

"Welcome," The sales lady happily called from behind the counter, "is there anything I can help you with?"

"I am looking for a few clothing pieces to match with my boyfriend. Do you have any that would fit my description?"

Sanji looked astounded at my request. I had a feeling he would have assumed I would choose another dress, close to the style I am wearing currently.

I threw him a sly smile and moved away from his side to discuss the idea in soft whispers worth the sales lady.

"Is he the boyfriend you mentioned?" The sales lady asked.

"Yes, he is." I nodded with a smile the was filled with the endless love I felt for him.

"Well," she mused, "I might have just the thing for you, Miss." With that she moved away from me to one of the clothing racks that populated the shop. She returned with a white blouse with a black waistcoat.

"If you pair this with some black pants you would fit lovely with your boyfriend."

"It is amazing, but there is one problem." I said, "I do not only more clothing than the ones I currently wear."

"That can be changed quite easily." The lady returned with a smile. I could see the money signs in her eyes, though she did stay professional the entire time.

We were now loaded with new clothes for me as well as a a set of boots with low heels. Sanji offered to carry all the bags like the gentleman he is and we retreated back to the ship to drop off the clothes. I did also wish to change into one of the outfits. It made me feel at ease to finally get rid of the last piece that tethered me to the village that made me an outlaw.

The entire way back I could feel eyes burn into my spine. They felt scrutinising and hateful. A shiver ran down my spine involuntary.

Sanji noticed it and asked, "Are you alright?'

I smiled and lied, mumbling a quick; "Yes, I'm alright."

The ship was in sight and I wanted nothing more than to disappear from the hateful eyes inside the background. I had already tried to look around to find the scorch, but there was nothing out of place.

"I don't think you are alright." Sanji said, watching me swivel my head around to locate my uncomfortable feeling.

"You are right," I sighed, "I think I could need some kind of distraction. Being on the ship for so long, and hidden, must have toyed with my senses."

"We could take a walk around the forest. The calmness there should sooth any feeling that is left."

"You are probably right." I smiled and hastened my steps back to the ship.

I had changed into a new outfit while we were at the ship, but moved quickly to the forest soon after

The clothes that matched Sanji was the one I chose. A white tight-fitting blouse with a black waistcoat, all dressed over black trousers. Even the boots were replaced with the black heeled ones.

It hadn't taken long and both Sanji and I had taken on a relaxed pace inside the forest. The sound of the birds and the peaceful atmosphere did wonders for my nerves, but a small part of me kept staying on high alert.

The eyes were still there, but less hostile. Still it didn't sit well with me and Sanji kept noticing.

The sound of falling water reached my ears and a waterfall with a lake below caught my attention.

Without much thought or idea I walked closer to the water and pulled my hand through it. The water wasn't cold, but actually very refreshing.

"I had heard from a few villagers talking about an oasis of beauty inside the forest. This must be it." Sanji said. He stood behind me and watched me make shapes on the water surface. "They say if you swim in its waters, you will relax immediately."

A smile pulled onto my face as I rose to my feet and turned to stare at the man across from me. "You want to take a dive, pretty boy?"

"Only I you'll allow it, young goddess."

I laughed at his flattery and pulled him into a hug, one he gladly reciprocated. "Stop with your flirting. I am already in love with you."

Sanji grinned and leaned closer to my ear. His voice dropped to a whisper and teased, "But where is the fun in that?"

A shiver ran down my spine at his husky voice and the breath that breezed past my ear in a soft tickle.

"I could go for a swim. What about you?" I said as I moved away from his embrace and started to remove my clothes, folding them neatly, until I was only left in a bra and panties.

I waded into the water until it reached my hips. "Come on, Sanji. The water feels lovely."

I threw a quick glance over my shoulder and saw that Sanji hadn't moved for the entire time, frozen like stone with heart shaped eyes. I let out a chuckle and called his same softly.

He didn't react and I called his name a bit firmer. This time it did work and he shook his head, his eyes returned to their lovely grey-blue colour.

"Come in. The water is lovely." I repeated my invitation.

That had set him well into motion. The clothes were placed neatly beside mine. He followed my path into the water until he stood behind me in his underwear.

I leaned back against his chest, his heart doing double the work. His arms had slithered around my waist and held me loosely in place.

I tilted my head back to look at him. His face was bright red, but he was still present.

"Still the little pervert you are, I see." I teased at his slight misery.

"Only for my lady." He retorted with a smile and the redness faded slowly. Both of us were becoming quite at ease in each other's embrace.

I pulled away from his embrace and dived into the water, swimming away from him. Sanji didn't wait and followed me as well.

We were both now in the deeper part of the lake and had to keep moving to stay afloat. It didn't matter to us, we just enjoyed the refreshing feeling of the water. The forest filled with sounds that eased our anxiety.

This time it was just us and nobody could break that silence.

We had left the water and had dressed ourselves after we had dried off in the sun. Now we were seated a bit away from the lake and watched the waterfall crash over the edge.

I sat between his legs, my back rested against his chest, our hands intertwined. We felt at peace inside the woods.

A shiver ran down my spine again and Sanji noticed my movement. "Cold, my dear?"

"No," I whispered, "Something or someone is watching us."

My eyes travelled over the green foliage. Nothing looked out of place, but my senses stayed on high alert

"My haki is not picking up anything." Sanji commented as he too had put his senses on high alert.

I released our hands and moved to stand into a crouch. My eyes flickered over the foliage again. Now I did spot a shadowy figure between the leaves.

I raised my voice to a growl. "I can see you. Come out. Now!"

I could feel Sanji's movements behind me. He had also moved to stand behind me. Every muscle was pulled tight, everything to fight his way out if he needed to.

I got to my feet and stared at the man that came into the clearing. His grey beard and hair was still the same as I had left the village. His hazel eyes still bright and now full of malice.

"What?" I said. "Grandpa? I thought you were dead. Killed by the Lord."

The old man laughed. His head tipped back with the motion, his hand had come up to cover his eyes.

It nerved me how he was still alive. It didn't sit right with me, not one bit.

"Who is he?" Sanji had asked from behind me.

"The Alpha of my pack from the village I was banished from. Killed by the lord the island, though I had never seen it." I answered quickly.

"Are you sure?" Grandpa taunted. His laughing had come to a sudden halt. Even the forest was silent. When he looked down at us again, his face had changed.

The young lord stared at us now. Still the hazel eyes, but the beard was gone and his grey hair had returned to its normal light brown. Even the wrinkles in his face had disappeared.

I was so confused that I could only look on with both shock and horror.

Grandpa, now as the young lord, opened his arms in an invitation. "Aren't you happy to see me, Y/N?"

I shook my head in a loss for words, but Sanji did have a few. "What do you want from her?"

The man let out a soft snicker. "So you found a new knight in shining armour. Well, it doesn't matter. The question is not 'from', but 'with' her."

"What... What do you mean?" I barely got my voice to work and was able to push out that question.

"But to take you home of course. You have been selected to become queen, YN."