Lara's POV

“That is one ugly sea cow”, I muttered while staring and Mohmoo, the sea cow? that the Arlong Pirates have taken as their pet.

Said cow was trying to look dangerous and fearsome with its big eyes and stubby horns.

“We should let it sink our ship”, suggested Lia from my side. She did run inside the kitchen the second she saw the sea cow and was now back. Probably having put our fridge into her inventory. She now also had the Den Den Mushi under her arm.

“Sure, why not?”, I said with a shrug and we both used Geppo to jump over Mohmoo and towards the island. It was good that Mohmoo was still here, it means that Luffy has not yet landed.

We reached the shore a few minutes of Geppo later and landed safely in a small forest. “Do you know where we might find the village?”, I asked and started to walk in a random direction along the shore. We will either find the village or Arlong Park this way.

“No, but we will find one in time”, answered Lia. She had taken out a trunk for the Den Den Mushi and was now carrying it on her shoulder.

“Do you think we have to wait for too long?”, I asked. We both agreed to start our journey along with the Straw Hats, this way we might come along some of their more interesting adventures. We did not want to participate in most of their random stuff, but things like Alabasta and Enies Lobby were sure to be fun.

“Nah, I can faintly feel someone approaching. There are three people”, informed Lia.

“Seriously? How perfect is our timing? These must be Zorro, Ussop and either Johnny or Yosaku, can't remember which one. Or the other three.

Let's search for Nojiko's house then”, I said ecstatically and jumped upwards with Geppo until I was high enough to look over the whole island. There were two villages, both too far away to see anything and then there was Arlong Park. Also too far away to see any details.

“Hmm, Nami was the orange haired girl and Nojiko the blue haired one am I right?”, asked Lia from next to me.

“Yes, can you see them?”, I asked. Her skill makes it possible for her to spot them from this distance and even from further away.

“Yes, Nami is in Arlong Park and Nojiko in a garden with lots of tangerine trees”, she said and pointed towards the north west.

“Let's greet her”, I said with a grin and began to jump towards her home. Lia followed closely and at one point said that Nojiko left her home. This meant that she was soon meeting Ussop. Good that we have the manga in my inventory or I would never have been able to remember all their names and the things that happened in it.

We reached her house and opened the unlocked door. The insides were homely, two beds and a kitchen. “I'll make some tea”, declared Lia and began to work in the kitchen.

“Can you also make some chicken?”, I asked, now lying on the couch.

“Sure”. What a nice sister I have.

It took Nojiko half an hour to come back home, she had a weak presence and a presence that was unconsciousness with her. “Could you open the door for me? This guy is heavy”, she asked and I opened the door.

She looked at me and went pale, she did not expect for someone other than the child next to her to open the door. The child did also mimic her with his own stunned expression. “Hi”, I said with a wave.

“Who are you?”, she asked after quickly overcoming her shock.

“I'm Lara, we're here to meet someone”, I answered and stepped to the side so that they could come in. She numbly walked inside and I took Ussop off of her shoulder before throwing him on the couch.

“My sister made some food”, I offered and sat down on her table, completely ignoring the fact that we were trespassing in her home and that it should be her who offers anything, if at all.

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Third Person's POV;

Nojiko felt conflicted. The food was delicious, better than anything she has ever eaten. But the scenario was strange. She was inside her home, eating good food, made by a pair of strange sisters.

They looked cute, even if their breasts were a little on the smaller side. But they had also very long ears, they even went beyond their head and bent slightly downwards. She had the strange desire to touch them, test if they were real.

Why were these sisters in her home? They said they were here to meet someone, but whom? How did they come here and why wasn't Arlong searching for them?

Were they with the strange boy that tried to attack a fish man?

So many questions, it might be good to start finding answers.

“Could you please tell me again why you are in my house, without my consents?”, she asked once she finished eating. It was too good to stop and she didn't want to risk not being able to finish.

“Ah yeah, Lia and I are here to find a crew and a ship to sail the world”, explained the young woman with a loose pony tail. The other one, her sister, had a good dozen braids in her hair. That was the only distinction she could make out, other than their clothes.

“Like pirates?”, asked Nojiko with venom. Pirates were nothing but trouble and danger.

“Eh, not really. We are not into pillaging and raping the weak. We might sink a few pirate ships here or there, and maybe a marine ship. But our main focus is on adventuring”, waved this Lia off.

Adventuring, something that she once wished to do herself. Back then, when they were young and not under Arlong. She and Nami spoke for hours about their wish of travelling the world. Nami wanted to make a world map, while she wished to see the wonders it has.

“And why are you here for that?”, she asked again.

“We heard of Arlong and his ambitions. Decided to take him out while searching for a ship on the island. Creating an empire needs a fleet”, said this Lara nonchalantly. As if it would be easy to beat Arlong.

Nojiko went pale and a cold shiver run down her back. They couldn't, Nami was almost finished and there was no guaranty that they would beat Arlong. And his reaction would be the death for them all.

Her protest was stopped by the scream of the boy who woke up. He looked around and spotted an amused Lara, a slightly bored Lia, the grumbling boy and Nojiko who was still pale.

“You're that woman, you hit me. What about the fish man?”, he asked. His teeth were chattering in fear.

“My name is Nojiko and we lost them”, she replied after a moment.

“And you would be?”, asked Lara from her side. She looked at the long nose with interest, as if she was expecting something.

“Me?”, asked the teenager a little confused. He then shot up and stroke a pose, “I am the mighty Ussop, captain of a fleet of thirty ships with 2.000 strong and dangerous men at my call”.

“Sure, and my sister was once a mighty primordial being made out of energy that could level a mountain with a swish of her tail. Or better yet I was a goddess that ruled over a planet and could jump between dimensions”, deadpanned Lara. Lia snickered at the truth in her words and their looks of pure disbelieve.

“Don't lie!”, accused Ussop with a raised finger and in outrage.

“Says the right one. Anyway, you looked frightened Nojiko. I understand that you might fear Arlong's retaliation if we fail, but that won't happen. We know how strong he is and he is only a weak shadow of his former self. All the years in East Blue have made him weak”, addressed Lara now Nojiko. Ussop went back into a normal sitting position and listened as well. This might explain why Nami just left them.

“No, you don't understand. He's a monster”, retorted Nojiko frustrated.

“I want to kill him”, pressed the boy out between tears. All of them looked at him, some with a raised eyebrow others with understanding.

“Then go and die”, said Nojiko coldly. Ussop sputtered by her blatant way and Lia giggled in amusement.

“But I am too weak, even a female member, this witch stopped and beat me”, he said in desperation.

“That witch saved your life, she chooses a life worse than death”, mumbled Nojiko.

“But what am I supposed to do? They killed my father”, asked the boy with a glare. Desperation was clear in his eyes.

“Do you still have a mother?”, asked Lara suddenly. She was quite bored with the boy and wanted him to leave. The interesting topics will start once he's gone.

“Yes?”, he asked. Why would she ask such a question?

“Then go to her and give her a hug. She must be worried, just think about how she would feel if you would die too”, continued Lara. The boy stared at her and then cried some more before silently leaving.

“Well, that was nice of you. But I have to go too, I need to find Nami”, said Ussop once the boy was gone. Nojiko looked at him in shock.

“That won't be possible, she's a member of Arlong's pirates, she is even the witch that saved the boy”, she then said and Ussop's eyes bulked out from shock.

“So she only used us? She helped to defend my village, laughed and looked happy to be with us, yet that was all a lie to get on our money?”, he asked deeply saddened and betrayed.

“Come I'll bring you to the village, you might be able to find a ship that can bring you away”, offered Nojiko after a long uncomfortable silence.

Ussop nodded without saying anything and stood up. “And you two?”, asked the blue haired woman the twins. Lia was lazing on the couch and Lara had started cleaning the dishes at some point in their conversation.

“We? We'll stay for a moment, the person we want to meet isn't here yet”, said Lara. Nojiko's eye twitched slightly at the blatant rudeness but shrugged. There isn't anything of worth in her home and Nami's money was hidden. They did give her food as well, and they seem nice enough.

Lara finished cleaning the dishes and then decided to cuddle Lia a little on the sofa. They both fell asleep and were woken up by the sound of a glass that crashed into the wood.

One looked at the other and they both looked at Nami who was either not seeing them or not bothering with their presence. They shrugged and waited under their blanked, she would calm down.

Nami managed to destroy most of the furniture in short order and then began to cry while sitting on the table. It was in this position that Nojiko found her. The blue haired woman wondered where the twins might be but shrugged. Nami wouldn't have done this with them around.

“What is going on?”, she asked and sat down on the opposite of her.

“Nothing, just tired”, said Nami without raising her head.

“Uhu, tired, I thought we would tell each other everything”, accused Nojiko. She had a hint.

“It's nothing, just...nothing”, replied Nami unhelpfully. This meant that Nojiko will have to address it directly.

“It were those pirates am I right, who are they?”, she asked and Nami looked up for the first time.

“You've met them?”, she asked and Nojiko nodded.

“Yes, the twins and the captain, but he came over more as a liar”, she answered with a smile.

Nami sighed and began to tell the story of her meeting them. How they fought Buggy the Clown, then saved Ussop's village and when she betrayed them on the Baratie. At some point, she began to cry and was so exhausted that she fell asleep on the table.

“Kinda sad that she is going to push them away. It's obvious from the fondness in her words that she really wishes to go with them”, said a female voice suddenly from behind her. Nojiko spun around and saw how the twins untangled themselves from her couch.

They must've been under the blanket and Nami didn't know of them being here. Come to think of it, she never mentioned them in her story. “Will you leave when I tell you the whole story?”, asked Nojiko. She would have to do the same to the guys that followed Nami here.

“We? Nah, we have nothing to do with Nami. We're here to meet someone and maybe smack down Arlong a little. He changed”, shot Lara down with a wave of her hand.

Nojiko lets a deep tired breath out and sagged back into her chair. Who were these girls? They sounded so confident in their ability to beat Arlong. “Fine, can you keep an eye on Nami? I don't want her to do anything stupid”, she then said. Sure that the twins wouldn't leave before they met the person they came for. Whoever that may be.

With that, she left the house to search for the boys that so recklessly followed Nami to this island.

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Lara's POV;

“Let's go outside, Nami might wake up any moment and I don't want her to see us yet”, I whispered to Lia and we both left. Outside we searched the ground a little and found the place where Nami must stow her money. The earth was recently ploughed and looked to be moved frequently.

“Should we take it on us so that the marines won't find anything?”, asked Lia.

“Nah, let them find it and then kill the marines. We can take their ship, it's surely in better condition than anything we might find on the island”, I replied with a shake of my head.

“Chichichi, I'm captain Nezumi of the Marine's 16th Branch. Are you the woman named Nami? The criminal?”, asked a high and squeaky voice. It was annoying and I had the desire to hit the owner of this voice.

“Criminal? Might be right, with how I am a pirate. But you must know that I am an officer of Arlong's Pirates, he isn't fond of people attacking his crew”, warned the voice of Nami.

I threw Lia a glance and we both hid on the roof of Nami's house.

“Chichichi, I have no idea of you being a pirate. I only got a report that you might hide stolen goods”, laughed the marine.