"𝓛𝓲𝓰𝓱𝓽 𝓹𝓲𝓷𝓴 𝓼𝓴𝔂 𝓾𝓹 𝓸𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓻𝓸𝓸𝓯. 𝓢𝓾𝓷 𝓼𝓲𝓷𝓴𝓼 𝓭𝓸𝔀𝓷, 𝓷𝓸 𝓬𝓾𝓻𝓯𝓮𝔀. 𝓣𝔀𝓮𝓷𝓽𝔂 𝓺𝓾𝓮𝓼𝓽𝓲𝓸𝓷𝓼, 𝔀𝓮 𝓽𝓮𝓵𝓵 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓽𝓻𝓾𝓽𝓱. 𝓨𝓸𝓾'𝓿𝓮 𝓫𝓮𝓮𝓷 𝓼𝓽𝓻𝓮𝓼𝓼𝓮𝓭 𝓸𝓾𝓽 𝓵𝓪𝓽𝓮𝓵𝔂? 𝓨𝓮𝓪𝓱, 𝓶𝓮 𝓽𝓸𝓸."

***

Now... Artemisia sounded like she was more joking about Luffy revealing what they were a moment ago. That was not actually how she felt. How she felt was that he was a complete idiot and she wanted to jump across the table to beat him up. What in his right mind made him think that he should just out them like that? Judging by how the staff were already weary of them, this was only going to further solidify their reasons for not trusting them. They might be kicked out on the spot. Their next step would be to steal a boat but that was way too much work.

It was then that Artemisia knew what she had to do, "No, no," She quickly jumped into the conversation. Kaya turned her gaze to the brunette with curious eyes. Artemisia leaned forward in her chair. She had an amused smile on her face, trying to cover the slight annoyance she felt toward the situation, "He's joking-"

All damage control Artemisia attempted was completely thrown out. Luffy opened his big mouth once more, "Yep," Luffy confirmed Kaya's earlier words. Artemisia froze in her spot. She could feel the harsh stare of Klahadore. She tried her best to ignore it. The smile on her face fell in an instant. She cast a glance at Luffy. He had a big grin on his face, "We haven't sailed together for very long," Looking around, Artemisia could see that her fellow crewmates felt the same way she did. Zoro kept his head ducked down slightly. Nami had her lips pursed together and she blinked slowly as if she couldn't believe Luffy was admitting this outright. The said boy kept going, "But we have already defeated an evil clown, raided a Marine base, and taken down a captain with an axe for a hand."

Oh, he had just dug them into the deepest hole- "These sound a lot like your adventures, Usopp." Excuse her? Artemisia turned her head to see Kaya smiling at Usopp. She didn't look concerned with the words that Luffy was telling her. She looked interested. Did she perhaps hear him wrong? She couldn't have... Right?

The reaction was something Usopp wasn't expecting either. Usopp let out a forced laugh, "Yeah, that's..," He glanced over Luffy, "That's crazy." He wiped his face, most likely a nervous habit. Artemisia drew this inference from seeing the sweat that was starting to build up on his forehead. She didn't blame him for being so nervous either.

You'd think that Luffy would've stopped by now but he hadn't, "Oh, yeah. And we're just getting started." He stood and jumped onto his chair. He kept a firm grip on his drink. He looked like he was about to make a speech of some kind. Artemisia could only worry about what was going to come out of his mouth next.

Slowly, she ducked down into her seat. It was like she was trying to avoid being noticed by trying to force herself into being as small as possible. She placed a hand on her face, face palming, "I'm gonna kill him after this." She muttered to herself. She could see it as clear as day in her mind. They would get thrown out, she would find the closest rock, and throw it at him. It was a foolproof plan as long as he didn't use his stretchiness to his advantage.

Someone else seemed to hear her, "I'll join you." It was Nami. The two locked eyes. They both took their glasses, clinking the crystal together. They took a big gulp as they watched the scene in front of them unfold.

"What are you doing?" Klahadore walked around the table instantly. He had a look of anger on his face. His eyes were stuck on Luffy's form, "Get down from there at once!"

Not once did Luffy acknowledge the butler's presence. Luffy started to give a speech, eyes shifting to look around at the people in the room, "Being a pirate has been my dream for as long as I can remember," Artemisia could hear shifting from beside her. She looked over to see it was Nami. The orange-haired girl looked uncomfortable. Artemisia's eyes landed on her empty hand. She could feel her own inching toward it. "And I'm finally making it a reality," Luffy put one foot on the table, making everyone flinch at the noise. Artemisia ceased her movements. Her hand stopped just an inch from Nami's own. She pulled it back to rest in its previous place. Stupid Luffy. She focused on him again. He had his elbow rested on his knee as he grinned at Kaya, "We're heading out to the Grand Line, where even more adventures await us," Placing his other foot on the table, he was now standing on it. He made his way to Kaya, "And at the end of the journey, I'm gonna find the ultimate treasure, the One Piece, and become," He stopped when he finally reached her. He stared down at her form, "King of the Pirates." He took a drink from his cup.

Kaya narrowed her eyes at him, "You're serious?"

"Unfortunately," Artemisia murmured.

There wasn't a direct answer from Luffy. Luffy only handed his drink to Klahadore. The butler looked upset at the display. Still, he took the drink from the boy and groaned in annoyance. Luffy bent down in front of Kaya and placed his hands on her shoulders, "Kaya, you have a beautiful ship out there. A caravel with a sheep figurehead. It spoke to me," That simple statement was enough for Nami to become even more annoyed. Artemisia only sighed. "That's the ship we need to follow our dreams. I promise you, we'll take care of it. Maintain it. Treat it like any other member of our crew," Both Luffy and Kaya smiled at each other. "Because a ship is also a home."

"That will be quite enough!" Klahadore exclaimed. Both turned to him. Correction, mostly everyone turned to look at him. That was the first time that he had raised his voice the whole time they'd been here. Seemed like he finally reached his breaking point. "I should've known Usopp would bring riffraff to our doorstep." Guess he really had it out for Usopp.

And he definitely did. Klahadore walked to the other side of the table. He was heading for one person in particular. Usopp. Usopp looked prepared for whatever Klahadore was going to do. Kaya turned in her chair to speak to the butler, "Klahadore, it's okay. I-" She was cut off by a coughing fit.

Stopping in his tracks, Klahadore gestured to Kaya, "Now look what you've done. You've upset Miss Kaya," Hearing that made Artemisia raise an eyebrow. Was he seriously trying to pin that on them? If she recalled correctly, Kaya was perfectly fine until Klahadore started basically attacking her friend. Klahadore moved his attention to everyone instead of focusing purely on Usopp, "All of you, out of this house at once!"

The said girl shook her head, "No," She was over the coughing fit at this point. Her voice was a little raspy from all the coughing. Klahadore motioned for Buchi to come over to them. "It's late. Let them stay the night." The sentiment made a smile appear on Luffy's face. On the other hand, Artemisia was pleasantly surprised by this.

Composing himself, Klahadore helped Kaya up from her chair, "As you wish, Miss Kaya, but they are out first thing in the morning." He led the girl out of the room. Usopp kept his gaze on the two until they disappeared from sight. He wasn't trying too hard to hide his attraction, was he? Artemisia would be surprised if Kaya hadn't caught on already.

The room was silent. Buchi and Sham had left as well at this point so it was only the crew and Usopp. The grin on Luffy's face was still ever present, "That went pretty well," He looked to the others, "Don't you think?"

"Well?" Artemisia scoffed. "You call that, "pretty well?"" Nami shared the sentiment. The girl looked like she wanted to strangle Luffy right then and there. But she didn't. They were instead led to the rooms where they could stay for the night. They were a little spaced out which was a bit of an inconvenience but Artemisia doubted that they would listen to the concern. While the room Artemisia was put in was very nice, she couldn't sleep. So she decided to take a walk around the huge mansion. She walked out of the room, making sure to be silent. She didn't want to be accused of stealing if she got caught. That was the last thing she needed right now. Artemisia turned a corner and saw an interesting sight. Nami was hiding behind a case. When Nami noticed the girl, she stepped out from behind it with a sigh. Artemisia stared at her with confusion, "What are you doing?" That's when something else caught her attention, "And what's with the pillowcase?"

The question made Nami stop for a moment. She hid the pillowcase slightly behind her, "Nothing," Nami shook her head, "Nothing. You should go to bed, it's late."

Yeah... That definitely wasn't suspicious. Artemisia crossed her arms over her chest, "Nothing? You expect me to believe that," Nami didn't seem like she was going to budge. Artemisia walked over and grabbed the pillowcase from Nami's grip. The sudden jostle made clanging noises sound from inside the pillowcase. The sound made Artemisia give Nami an exasperated expression, "Nami, seriously?" She literally just said that this was the last thing they needed and this happened.

No longer trying to defend herself, Nami tried to come up with a different excuse, "What? It's not like they'd notice a few missing things." She didn't look the least bit sorry. Artemisia knew that Nami wouldn't have felt bad about it. She was just hoping that the girl would've at least been more careful.

That was something Artemisia tried to voice. Nothing came out because as soon as she opened her mouth, the sound of footsteps filled her ears. Nami looked to have heard it as well because she froze along with Artemisia. Nami's eyes darted around to try to find an escape. She apparently found something since she grabbed Artemisia's hand and dragged her toward a door at the end of the hall.

The two were quickly to rush inside, closing the door behind them to avoid getting caught. Artemisia tried to look around the room they were in but it was too dark to see anything. That was until a light came on. When it did, Artemisia saw that they were in a very pink room with different pieces of ornate furniture. It looked nice... What wasn't nice was the girl in the bed who saw them rush into the room with a pillowcase full of who knows what.

"Nami? Artemisia?" Kaya inquired. Nami gasped in surprise. She took the pillowcase from Artemisia and hid it behind her, trying to make sure Kaya didn't see it. Kaya sat up in bed and looked the two girls over, "What are you doing? Is everything all right?"

"Sorry, this house is massive," Nami came up with a lie easily. "I was just trying to find the bathroom." Unfortunately, it wasn't the best lie she could come up with.

To remedy the bad lie, Artemisia tried to add more detail to it, "And she means it when she says this place is big. It's bigger than any home I've been in." Once again, it only made things sound worse. It now sounded like they were trying to cover something up.

The something that Kaya just now noticed Nami was holding behind her, "With a pillowcase?" Artemisia bit the inside of her cheek, anxiety building up inside her. Nami pursed her lips as she thought over her options. Knowing that she was caught again, she stopped attempting to hide the pillowcase, casting a glance down at it. Kaya moved the blankets off her, "So... You are a pirate after all." She stood, getting out of bed.

The title offended Nami, "I hate pirates."

"I am though." Artemisia smiled.

"No," Nami stated. "You're someone who acts like they are," Artemisia sincerely doubted that. She was raised by a pirate, a captain no less, with a pirate crew on a pirate ship. It was safe to assume that a pirate was exactly what she was. Nami didn't look like she wanted to argue about that so Artemisia kept her mouth shut. Nami turned her attention to Kaya, "But I am who I am," The three girls inched closer together. "And I won't apologize for that." Nami sat the pillowcase on a chair nearby.

There was a moment of silence. Kaya moved to sit in a chair that sat in a corner. Beside the chair was a flower-like lamp that lit up the corner. It was a pretty decoration. Almost as pretty as the girl sitting under it, "To be honest," Kaya started. "I find some of the decor to be a bit gaudy. I'd prefer to donate it to charity."

Again, Nami was upset with the word choice, "I'm not charity."

Hearing those words made Kaya backtrack completely, "No," She shook her head softly. "Of course not. I simply meant what's the point in having so much if you can't share it with others? Like those in need. Family. Friends."

A small smile was on Artemisia's face as she stared at Kaya. The girl was unbelievably sweet. From what it sounded like, she already had a tough life. Despite all that, she still chose to be kind. It made Artemisia think about her own circumstances. All of the pain and suffering she went through only made her less serious. It didn't make her kinder. She would argue that it made her harsher at times.

The smile was something that Nami caught. Once she saw the brunette smiling at Kaya with that expression on her face, she avoided staring at it, not liking the feeling she got when she did. She decided to focus on Kaya's words instead of the reaction of the girl beside her, "So we're friends now?" Nami got closer to the other girl. She shook her head, "You don't even know me."

"Usopp does, and that's a start." Kaya gestured for them to sit in a nearby chair.

Artemisia shrugged, "I'd say that's good enough for me."

There was not a moment wasted. Artemisia sat down on the couch that was pushed in front of a window. Nami hesitated. She thought to herself for a moment before finally joining Artemisia on the couch. They were all quiet, not knowing what to say or how to start the conversation. If there was something all of them had in common, it was not knowing how to interact with another girl. Artemisia was happy she wasn't alone in that.

The first one to speak up was Nami, "So what do we do now? Have a sleepover? Do each other's makeup?" That's what girls usually do during these situations, right? That's what she heard at least. When Artemisia used to be close with Lizbeth, the blonde mentioned her doing that with her old girl friends.

"We could kiss?" Artemisia suggested. The suggestion was immediately shot down by Nami hitting the back of her head. Artemisia nodded to herself. She fully expected that reaction from Nami.

The interaction between Nami and Artemisia made Kaya laugh. The laughing turned to coughing pretty quickly. Both girls looked at Kaya with concern and nervousness. Nami was the first to voice her concern, "Kaya, are you okay?"

Glancing up at the girls, Kaya looked displeased, "Not you too," Nami questioned what she meant. Artemisia remained silent, only staring at her with a curious glance. "Everyone's so careful around me. Like one wrong move and I'll break. I don't want your pity." That made sense. Artemisia could understand where she was coming from. She could see herself getting frustrated from something like that. She got frustrated already when people treated her like she needed help.

Back when she first joined Axel's village, she was still a young girl. When she was finally comfortable, she tried to help out around the village. She hated just sitting around, doing nothing. So she jumped in to do anything that anyone asked of her. There were times when she would take on tasks that some people felt were too hard for her. They tried to get her to let them do it or let them help her and it upset her greatly. It was like they saw her as some weak, fragile thing. That was the last thing she was.

"Well, you won't get it then," Nami stated.

"Not from me either." Artemisia agreed.

A smile appeared on Kaya's face once more. She nodded in content. Nami and Artemisia found themselves grinning as well. After that moment, the girls were able to start up a conversation pretty quickly. They started talking like they had been friends for years. At one point, Kaya moved to sit on the couch with Nami while Artemisia decided to sit on the floor in front of the couch.

Laughing, Kaya seemed nervous about the new topic of conversation, "Oh," She shook her head with a soft smile. "Um..," Another laugh came from her. "Usopp and me? No. No."

That had to be the most surprising thing this whole day, "Oh, come on," Artemisia had a teasing grin on her face. She leaned closer as her smile grew,  "You can't be serious. He definitely likes you," Kaya shook her head again, still denying the words. Artemisia raised her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, "How did you even meet?"

"We've known each other for years," Kaya recounted the memory with the smile still present on her face. How did she not know about her feelings toward him? Was she in that much denial? Just hearing his name made her happy by the look of it. "Ever since his mother died. He didn't have anybody, so my parents gave him a job at the shipyard," She seemed to be reliving the memory in her mind, "He likes to come around and tell me all about his brave exploits and grand adventures," Nami smiled at this. "And truth is, they make me feel better."

Soon enough, the smile on Nami's face disappeared, "Your parents, what happened to them?"

The smiles were all gone now. Artemisia shifted in her spot on the floor. She didn't say anything, it wasn't her place to. Kaya tried to keep her smile up but it didn't last long, "They, um..," Her gaze was away from either girl. Artemisia knew exactly what that move was. She was trying not to cry and looking at either of them would cause the tears to flow. "They died at sea," Her eyes started to become watery. "All these years and it still takes my breath away. I couldn't even go through their belongings. Just... Locked up the memories in the East Wing, where their bedroom was."

"I get the feeling," Artemisia spoke in a soft tone. Her crossbow had been a gift from her mother. Apparently, she had given it to Axel to give to Artemisia when she turned 13. When Axel first gave it to her, it brought up all those past feelings of abandonment. She couldn't even look at it without getting that crushing feeling of loneliness and dread. She avoided the gift like the plague. Only when she sat down and talked to Axel about everything did she accept the gift from her mother.

"I'm sorry," Nami said.

Shaking her head, Kaya teared up a little, "Have either of you ever lost anyone close to you?" She looked at the two girls. The pain she felt could be seen in her eyes. Artemisia knew exactly what she was doing. She was trying to find someone to relate to.

The first to respond was Nami, "No." She shook her head. There was something about Nami's answer that made Artemisia stop for a moment. Artemisia looked up at the girl. There was a flicker of something in her eyes. It was only there for a second but it was there. She went somewhere else... Where did she go?

Tears finally fell from Kaya's eyes, "I'm jealous."

A scoff came from Nami, "Says the rich girl." While it sounded harsh, the girl was smiling.

"You're not very good at this friends thing, are you?" Kaya chuckled.

"No, I guess I'm not." Nami joined in on the laughter.

Both girls were now laughing. Artemisia didn't join in. She couldn't. She was stuck on Kaya's question still. She had chosen to push Nami's reaction on the back burner for now. When she did that, it only made her feel the initial feelings that Kaya's question brought on. She felt the same breathlessness the girl felt, "I have," Nami and Kaya ceased their laughter. They turned their attention to the brunette. "Lost someone, I mean. My mom. She didn't die. She just left." Artemisia shrugged. It was a better situation than Kaya's. Still, it was something that hurt her to think about.

"Why?" Kaya questioned.

It was almost like a damn had broken. All the pent-up emotions she had been feeling over the years were hitting her all at once. They didn't force themselves out in some kind of blind rage or crying fit but you could see it in her body language. It was like years of tiredness and washed over her body. She took a deep breath before she explained, "It was safer. The lifestyle she lived wasn't the most ideal to have a child. She realized that and dropped me off with a friend," There was silence. Artemisia felt a little bad for ruining the jolly mood so she tried to shift the tone, "But enough about that, how about we talk about..."

The conversation moved back into a happy one. It felt like the girls were high school girls at a sleepover after a big game. It was nice. They talked for what felt like forever. When they got tired enough, they decided to call it a night. The three stood from their spots. Kaya had to hold onto the chair beside the couch to pull herself up, "Why don't you two join me for breakfast tomorrow? Your friends too," She walked beside the bed and held onto the bed frame on the bottom, "We can discuss a deal for the caravel."

"I'd like that." Nami nodded.

"I would too," Artemisia shot a smile at the girl. "I really like your company, Kaya." The blonde returned it. She moved to get back into bed.

It seemed like everything was done until Nami continued, "This may not be my place," Artemisia cast a glance at Nami. The expression on her face was one of interest. She wanted to know what more Nami had to say. Kaya sat down on the bed and covered herself up. "But don't let Klahadore, or anyone for that matter, run your life. You're stronger than you think." That was something Artemisia agreed with wholeheartedly.

Nodding, Kaya smiled, "I appreciate that," They all shared a grin. "Good night, Nami, Artemisia."

"Good night."

"Night."

Nami went to make a move to leave first. She was stopped when Kaya called out, "Don't forget your pillow." A laugh escaped from Artemisia as she watched Nami stop in her tracks.

The orange-haired girl grabbed the pillowcase that sat on the chair from before. She had a smile on her face as she hummed. She was the first to leave the room. Artemisia gave one last grin to Kaya, waving to her, before exiting the room with Nami. Artemisia and Nami walked in silence, neither needing to say anything.

Suddenly, Nami stopped in the middle of the hall. Artemisia looked at her with confusion. Nami reached into the pillowcase and pulled out an object. It was a round, gold box. It was quite beautiful. Artemisia swore it had to be worth more than all the clothes she brought from Axel's island. Nami placed the box on a nearby table and started walking once more.

A face-splitting grin made its way onto Artemisia's face, "Aw! So you do have a heart?"

The reaction made Nami roll her eyes, "Shut up."

~~~

Just so everyone knows, Artemisia 100% has a small crush on Kaya. Who wouldn't, tbh? This chapter would've been done the other night but I watched the Era's Tour movie instead. Sorry, not sorry 💀. Either way, I hope you guys liked this chapter!