Latest Update:May 5, 2023
Summary: Reiju is not amused with not knowing where she is, and it's becoming increasingly apparent the guy in the boat with her is insane. Luckily she has the gun and the upper hand (she hopes), but the more he talks, the more she wonders if he might actually be trying to help. Is this some kind of conspiracy, or is Bones somehow telling the truth when he claims to know the future?
Link: https://m.fanfiction.net/s/13886675/1/The-Princess-and-the-Prophet
Word count:87k
Chapters:10
Chapter 1: Reiju and Bones
"AH!" I jerked awake and sat up, looking around in a mild panic. The first thing I noticed was the ocean around me. ALL around me. Nothing but pitch black moonlit sea water as far as the eye could see in the light of the lantern behind me. There was nothing except for me, the stars, the boat I was in and…
"Well, I see you're finally awake," declared a silky smooth voice from behind me as I felt a ring of cold steel press itself to the back of my head, "Now talk."
"Yes ma'am." I raised my hands, both in a gesture of peace, and as a preparation to get the gun away from her if she got antsy. Then I started well, talking. "Where are we, what do you wish to know, there is no need to be unfriendly, and I will happily answer any questions I know the answer to if you will please just put the gun down. I really don't like having a gun to my head and I assure you I have no idea where we are or what I've done to earn your displeasure."
There was a sigh from behind me, "So you don't know either. What's your name?"
"Everyone calls me Bones," I replied, "May I ask your name?"
"Reiju Vinsmoke."
My heart skipped at least three beats as my racing mind skidded to a halt, Oh…FUCK…
She sounded like she was smiling, "I see you know who I am."
"I think I know where we are now," I declared calmly, "Although I don't think you'll believe what I'm going to say."
"I've been to the New World, try me."
"Would you believe I'm from a parallel universe where our current world is just a story?" I asked calmly, completely certain she'd never believe me.
Instead, the gun pressed a little more firmly against the back of my head, "Go on. Let's see how deep you can dig this hole. I'm morbidly curious."
"I was filling out a form for shits and giggles, a wish granting form more or less. Never imagined it would actually work. My wish was to come to this world and join the main characters on their adventures," I explained, "One in particular I think will interest you is…would you please not have that pointed at my head for a moment? What I'm about to say will get a reaction, and I'd rather that reaction not be a twitch of your trigger finger."
"Not happening," Reiju told me coldly.
"Why don't you just stick a hand to me and if you don't like what I say you can poison me?" I asked, "That would be a much more formidable interrogation tactic don't you think?"
"I don't want you having any time to think of a way out of it if I decide to kill you," Reiju replied, "Besides, your interest in it makes me wonder if you have an antidote on you that I missed."
I sighed, "Fuckin' ay Reiju, I'm tryin' to tell you where your brother Sanji is and that…" POW! "OWWWWOOO! MY HEAD DAMMIT!" In wake of having my bell royally rung, I lurched forward and clutched it, rubbing the back of it where I'd felt the bullet bounce off and checking my hand for blood. To my surprise, despite what felt like a bruise forming, I wasn't even bleeding.
Then Reiju had me in a chokehold, "You know, maybe I should poison you."
I went completely limp and settled back against her. That was a very nice chest pressed up against the throbbing back of my head, "If that will make you happy. Your brother is at the Sea Restaurant Baratie working as the sous chef. The fact that your bullet didn't work means that the wish granting form did, which means you were transported here without a trace and can live a life away from Germa's shadow. I apologize if I've upset you by bringing you out here, I was just trying to do something nice for you."
Her grip tightened, "Why?"
"Because you're absolutely fucking beautiful, Judge did you dirty, and I felt like you deserved it," I replied.
Her grip tightened a bit more as she growled, "Explain."
"He did a surgery or treatment or something on you so that you can't disobey him right?" I asked, "He basically killed your mother, turned three of your little brothers into heartless killing machines and tried to do the same thing to you, made you kill and destroy and do so many horrible things that you decided that you and all of Germa deserved death for it, aaand yeah. Your life sucks. I wanted to make it less sucky for you. Bit of that empathy thing Judge looks down on so much. Going by your reaction to it, perhaps whatever was granting my wish was a bit hamfisted about it, but if it got you out of that situation and somewhere you can live a happy life…then I can't complain. Kill me if that's what you honestly want, if we're in the East Blue like I requested, then I've done a good thing, and I hope your life is all the happier for it."
I lapsed into silence. I could have gotten out of the chokehold, but Reiju's abilities meant I'd be poisoned in a heartbeat, and it would also sour any chance of this turning friendly I might have had. Optimistic to the point of stupidity thinking she might be friendly after literally shooting me in the back of the head? Probably, but also practical. I had no way to circumvent the effects of poison if she did decide to poison me, and I had no desire at all to fight her.
She was quiet for what seemed like a long time. I didn't mind, her breathing was slow and steady even if I could feel her pulse pounding. Finally her pulse slowed down and then after a moment more she asked, "And the reason why I'm naked?"
Blood spurted out my nose, "Come again?!" My hands immediately flew down the buttons of my shirt and I shrugged out of it and the coat I was wearing over it as I sat up before proffering them to her with my eyes pointed firmly away, "Please cover up."
She accepted it and sounded slightly peeved, "Should I be insulted that your first instinct on learning I'm naked is to want me to cover up?"
"Don't get me wrong," I shot back without averting my eyes from the horizon, "I very much want to see you naked. I want to hold you, kiss you, cuddle you, go at it with you all night and then some more when we wake up. I want all that very badly. BUT, I will not violate your privacy like that. If I'm going to see that, I'd rather it be on account of you willingly and happily showing me because we're getting along that well. If that never happens, so be it. A friend's a friend and that's not something to be taken lightly."
Reiju was quiet for a moment and then a rustle of cloth later she declared, "Ok, you can look now."
I smiled and turned around, "Well then, now that we've got the unpleasantries out of the way, it's an honor to…meet you…" I trailed off at the end there because my brain was too busy short circuiting. Blue eyes, I'd known about those. Pink hair, I'd known about that. General bordering on supernaturally perfect physique and beauty? I'd known about that.
Knowing and being ready for it are two entirely different things.
I've never gotten lost in a woman's eyes before, but right then, with Reiju smiling at me? I couldn't have told you my name if asked. It wasn't until I heard wood shattering that I realized I had the bench I was sitting on in a death grip. Reiju's smile faltered and she quirked a spiral eyebrow, yes, actually spiral shaped, and pink. It was quite odd once I noticed it, not off putting by any stretch, but certainly unusual.
"Is something wrong?" she asked with a note of concern.
Thankfully my brain was at least starting to fire back up by then, "The story didn't do your beauty justice Ms. Reiju." I shook my head, trying to clear the pink fog from it before scrunching my eyes shut and bowing slightly with my hands on my knees, "I sincerely apologize if my staring has made you uncomfortable."
Reiju sounded like she was smiling, "I'm a princess. It happens. You're not very good at talking to people huh?"
I grimaced, "I'm actually a lot better than I used to be. It just all goes out the window when I'm flustered. The whole 'gun to my head' thing probably didn't help much. Completely reasonable reaction on your part," I added, "Frankly I would've gone ahead and poisoned me had our situations been reversed and then held the cure over my kidnapper's head."
Reiju shrugged with a small smile, "I thought about it, but without knowing your body type there was a chance of making it too strong and me not getting any answers out of you at all. Holding your nose shut until you woke up and then sticking your own gun to your head was a more surefire option. Also, judging by the fact that your skull bounced a point blank bullet of a quite frankly rather stout caliber, I'm not sure my poison would've done much to you."
I nodded, "Fair point. If you don't mind, may I see the gun in question? Prior to you shooting me I was under the impression that I wasn't in the slightest bit bullet proof."
Reiju quirked an eyebrow at me, and then lifted a forty-five caliber revolver from under the bench she was sitting on HOW THE HELL DID THAT NOT KILL ME?!
My eyes were about the size of dinner plates as I recognized the weapon, "HOW AM I NOT DEAD?! That should've splattered my head like an egg!"
Reiju shrugged, "You did say something about a wish granting form right? Was one of your wishes to be bullet proof?"
I blinked as she pointed that out and then remembered that I actually had taken 'Strong Resistance: Physical Attacks'. I laughed, "Ha! You're right, that does explain it."
Reiju gave me a thoughtful look, "So…you're seriously expecting me to believe you about being from another world?"
I shook my head, "Not in the slightest, but please ask yourself, if I had a better explanation, why would I give the one that you'd never believe?"
Reiju thought for a moment, "Because the real explanation would make me try much harder to kill you. Your earlier acceptance of your death to my poison could've been a ruse, as could everything else you've said. Really…" suddenly the barrel of the gun was in my face again, "I should just shoot you in the eye and chase down that lovely tip about my dear little brother."
I raised my hands in a seemingly peaceful gesture and replied calmly, "You could do that, but I'm not even bleeding from one of those bullets, and while it might hurt me if you got me right in the eye or throat, do you think it's worth risking a mutual kill? One of the other things I asked for was strength comparable to a giant. If you shoot to kill and do not succeed instantly, rest assured that no matter how much I like you, I will neutralize the threat to my life. Given that I don't know if your poison can hurt me or not, the only way I can do that is to kill you."
"You think you can?" Reiju asked coldly, "I'm a seasoned commander of the Germa Double 6 and as much as I may hate what he did to us, my father is very good at making super soldiers. Bullets are as useless against me as they are you, and I've been trained as a soldier since I was a child."
I nodded, "Mmhmm, my point exactly. We are both extremely dangerous, and a fight between us right now presents no benefit to either side with quite a bit of risk for both parties. Your best option if you sincerely wish to kill me is to wait until I sleep and then poison me while I'm unconscious."
"And since you know that," Reiju finished thoughtfully, "You won't sleep until you can do so well clear of me to prevent me from doing so."
"Just so," I agreed, "However, while you're waiting for me to sleep and present you with an opportune moment to strike, you should really ask yourself what I could possibly stand to gain from getting you away from Germa and back to your brother."
"Ransom, weaken our forces, political leverage, personal grudge against Germa, intent to rape or seduce…you did already admit to desiring my body," Reiju ticked off easily, "the list of reasons why you might've kidnapped me aren't that hard to imagine. The list of reasons to let you live on the other hand boil down to the chance that you might be able to kill me too, which as you know…" her eyes hardened, "Isn't much of a deterrent for me."
I nodded and lowered my hands, "Very well, let me add one more. Every other person you've killed, you've done at the behest of Germa, at the order of your father who you could not disobey. That alone is already eating at you and destroying your sense of self worth. Nobody is telling you to kill me."
Reiju's eyes widened, "What?"
I smiled thinly, "You heard me. Nobody. Is telling you. To kill me. If you do so, then it is your choice and yours alone. There'll be nobody else to blame. No way to shift or mitigate the guilt. I have done nothing to harm you and will not do so except in self-defense. So go ahead Reiju," I extended my hand to her as if to shake, "poison me. That's your best chance to kill me. Go ahead, and make your first REAL kill if your paranoia is so strong that you can't accept an offer of help and friendship when it's given."
Reiju couldn't have looked more stunned if I had slapped her. Her life might not have meant jack shit to her, but her conscience was another matter entirely. Narrowing the options down to 'poison', 'potential fight to the death with a high chance of mutual kill' or 'be my friend', and then adding the idea that killing me would be the first kill she was truly responsible for to eliminate the first two was a risky strategy. It was entirely possible she'd say 'hell with it' and actually kill me. Judging by what I knew of her though, I liked my odds. She just needed one more push…
I softened my smile, my hand still extended, "You don't have to decide right now Reiju. I want to be your friend, and I'm willing to wait as long as you need to decide. Why don't you pass me the oars, and I'll start rowing us towards the nearest island? You can keep the gun. I wouldn't use it even if you gave it to me." Present opportunity to postpone decision, reestablish friendly intentions, deescalate and smile…
Reiju took a deep breath and then reached behind her to hand me an oar before trading hands and giving me the other one, "Row then. I'll steer."
I smiled as I accepted the oars, "Of course."
Reiju got up and started carefully backing towards the other end of the boat, which I now noticed was actually pretty large. By the time she reached the tiller, there was about fifteen feet between us along with a fair bit of supplies, a rifle that Reiju took to the back with her, and whatever was under that big lumpy tarp taking up half the boat.
As she settled by the tiller, I dipped the oars into the water and pulled, blinking in surprise when I found it scooted the boat forward effortlessly. I took my hand off the right oar to blink at it in surprise and then smiled as I started rowing again, "Making a delivery of Bink's Sake through the sea…Sea wind blows, to where who knows, the waves will be our guiiide…"
…
The sun had just started to poke its head over the horizon when Reiju let out a sigh with a small smile, "We're here."
I twisted to look over my shoulder and a smile broke over my face, "HA! I know exactly where we are now!"
I turned back and started rowing a bit faster, "We're exactly where we need to be! I just hope we're not too late!"
Reiju frowned at me, "Oh? And where precisely is that?"
I paused and remembered that she had no idea of my plan. Aside from my singing, not a single other word had passed between us for the rest of the night. I smiled, "Ah right, we were too busy doing the whole 'potentially hostile stand off' thing," I jerked a thumb over my shoulder, "That island there is Shells Town, home to the East Blue Infamous Axe-Hand Morgan. He's a tyrant, a pompous asshole, and a Marine Captain in charge of the local Marine Branch. This is also the location where Captain Monkey D. Luffy, yes Monkey D. as in 'the grandson of Marine Vice-Admiral Garp the Hero', will meet or if we're late already met his first mate, the infamous bounty hunter Roronoa Zoro."
That of course meant jack-all to Reiju, but one bit did get her attention, "Garp the Hero has a grandson? Are you intending to join him?"
I nodded, "As are you if ya want a near guaranteed path to finding Sanji."
Reiju stiffened slightly, "What do you mean?"
"I told ya Sanji's livin' his dream of being a cook right?" I explained, "He's the second finest chef in the East Blue, probably in the top twenty of the world at minimum. He's also picked up a second dream since you saw him last: He wants to find the legendary All Blue, a sea where all the fish from all the oceans of the world can be found. If it exists, smart money's on it being in the Grand Line somewhere. Captain Monkey D. Luffy will need a cook. Sanji will need a ride to the Grand Line. One battle with the remnants of a pirate armada later and the strongest cook will join the crew of the next Pirate King."
Reiju sucked in a deep breath and went pale. I knew immediately I'd upset her as she colored back up and turned nearly the color of her hair. "You didn't say he was going to become a pirate!" Reiju exclaimed furiously, "Why didn't you tell me?!"
"You didn't believe me about being from an alternate reality, why would you believe me about knowing the future?" I asked flatly, "Besides, it's the best course for him. If he doesn't join Luffy, then he'll spend the rest of his life sitting in that restaurant with his dream and ambition rotting away, wondering what could've been for the next two years."
Reiju started to say something and then something hit her and the color drained back out of her face, "What happens in two years?"
I scowled, "Judge finds out where he is in two years and comes after him. At that point, if he's not strong enough, like only venturing through the Grand Line can make him, he'll be dragged away in chains to be married off to one of Big Mom's daughters. He will then be unceremoniously killed at the wedding ceremony along with Judge, your brothers and you if they catch you, allowing Big Mom to seize control of Germa's cloning technology and overrun the world with an endless army of clones of her already monstrously powerful children."
I started rowing again, "Needless to say, I find that quite unacceptable."
Reiju covered her mouth and looked away, quickly closing her eyes to try and steady herself. I watched her for a moment and then saw a tear roll down her cheek. I sat forward, "Reiju. Sanji is not the same helpless child you saved back then. He's a bona fide badass capable of kicking entire buildings around like they're rubber balls. Using nothing but his feet he can fight on par with hundred million beri bounty pirates! He's an absolute beast in combat who can beat the shit out of fishmen underwater, again, using nothing but his feet!"
"He's every bit as capable as the rest of you," I added quietly, "He's grown so much that he may very well wind up protecting you this time around. If I hadn't brought you out here to meet him and maybe join him, then in two years, when Judge jumps off into Big Mom's trap like the blithering idiot he is, he would protect you, and beat the shit out of your brothers for payback while he was at it."
"I know you want to protect him, but just like then, the best way to do that now is to let him spread his wings and go show the world how high he can fly," I declared gently before I started rowing again.
"I don't know the exact location of the Baratie," I explained as I settled back into my rhythm, "What I do know is that Luffy will find his way to it soon. Shortly after he does, the Baratie will face an attack by Don Krieg and his pirate armada, the second strongest pirate crew currently in the East Blue. Normally I'd say Sanji could win alone, but Don Krieg plays dirty, and Sanji's going to need at least one more beast to help him win. Luffy is that beast. So if you believe anything I've said, then believe me when I tell you that Luffy is Sanji's absolute best chance for survival, because Luffy would declare war on the World Government itself to protect one of his friends, and he's strong enough to black their eye and get away with it."
Reiju gave me a watery look and then, "How can you be so sure of them? How can you speak like you already know them and what they're capable of?"
I smiled slightly, "Because I've already seen them do it, and I have faith they can do it again. If they can't," my smile widened, "then I'll just have to do it for them."
Reiju was quiet for a few moments and then she sat forward and put her face in her hands, "You're insane."
"I never claimed I wasn't," I replied with a now large and genuine smile, "but all the best people are."
…
While I tied the boat off at the dock, Reiju hopped off the boat onto the dock, easily landing on her toes before pausing to wait while I straightened up. I noticed she had the rifle hung over her shoulder by the strap and the revolver in her pocket. I smiled, "Thank you for grabbing those. I wouldn't have been comfortable leaving them in the boat unattended."
Reiju nodded, "Of course, it's just common sense not to leave one's weapons lying about. So, you said you're familiar with this town?"
I shook my head, "I know there's at least one restaurant, and I know a few names. That's about it."
Reiju sighed, "So you don't know where a clothing store might be?"
I shook my head, "Not a clue, but I'm sure we can ask around."
Reiju nodded, turned to head towards town and then turned back to me, "Do you have any money?"
I blinked and patted my back pocket where I usually kept my wallet, eyes widening in surprise as I found it right where it had been when I passed out on the couch at home before waking up in the boat. I pulled it out and opened it, my eyes nearly popping out of my head in surprise as I found it stuffed slam full of cash. I took a deep breath, exhaled, started rifling through for the biggest number I could find and a moment later pulled out a 10,000 beri note, "Is this a big number?"
Reiju raised an eyebrow and stepped a little closer to hiss, "For royalty no, for civilians quit flashing that around. How much have you got in there?!"
"Looks like the entirety of my savings from my world translated into beri," I replied quietly, "If I remember the conversion right it's a few million beri. I never spent money on anything much and I had a pretty good job, so it built up pretty quickly."
Reiju exhaled, "Good, that means we've got enough to buy me some clothes and get supplies. I'm sure you want your shirt and jacket back."
I nodded as we started walking, "You're welcome to them any time you want them. I'll be needing to buy some more clothes as well. Just because Sanji can pull off being an incredible badass in a nice suit doesn't mean I can."
Reiju raised an eyebrow, "Oh? And here I thought you were just a member of Aegis Zero stringing me along."
I actually paused for a second, "That hadn't even occurred to me, but you're right, it does look a bit like one of their suits doesn't it?" A grin broke out over my face, "Hah, thanks Reiju! That's actually a perfect cover story for how I know so much. Guess I'd better get good at fighting in a suit to help sell it. Wonder if I can improvise Six Powers…" I mused before remembering, "No wait, got that too, guess it'll just be an instinct thing…"
"The tricky part will be convincing me that it's just a story," She declared quietly, "Because all the evidence points straight to it. The only thing I don't know yet is why, which you said quite a bit about already, and how you managed to get me halfway across the world without waking me up, which can be easily explained in two words." Said two words obviously being 'Devil Fruit'.
"If I've got a transportation based devil fruit, I don't know about it," I replied, "I hope I don't since I'm planning to eat any devil fruit I find."
"Just because you don't doesn't mean somebody else working with you doesn't," Reiju shot back.
Silence reigned for a few moments and then I sighed, "You're never going to trust me are you?"
"Not likely."
.
…
.
"So what were you doing in a suit like that if you're not a member of Cipher Pol?" Reiju asked quietly as we walked up the street a few hours later, several new bags full of clothes and supplies in tow, "Normally only government agents dress like that barring formal occasions."
I shrugged, "Wish I knew. I don't even own a suit, let alone a white one, or one this well fitted. Must've come with the form. Actually…" I frowned, "Yeah, that makes sense. One of the options I selected was Cipher Pol grade sneaking abilities, I guess that came with being dressed for the part."
"You are really not helping your case in convincing me that you're not Cipher Pol," Reiju declared dryly.
"Would a Cipher Pol agent have a cover story this bad?" I shot back.
"If they were trying to convince me they weren't Cipher Pol by pretending to be a terrible liar with an unbelievable cover story," Reiju replied.
I couldn't do anything except sigh in frustration. Then something occurred to me, "You said you wouldn't believe me about not being Cipher Pol, but if you think I'm Cipher Pol then that means you acknowledge that my intel is almost certainly valid. Am I right?"
Reiju sniffed and wouldn't look at me, "Even though your story is ridiculous, yes, I believe you about everything else you said. Nobody except for me, my brothers and my father knew about the talks with Big Mom. If you were able to intercept our communications, then there's absolutely no reason to believe you couldn't know the things you warned me about. So, until you're proven wrong, I'll accept that you are correct." Then she gave me a look that absolutely promised death, "And when you slip up and reveal that you've been lying to me, I will kill you."
There was no waver, no hint of false bravado or emotion. In her mind it was simple, cold, hard fact. She honestly intended to try to kill me if I was wrong. A sobering thought to be sure, especially since she was one of the very few people I was likely to encounter pre-time skip who would actually be capable of it given my new resilience.
"Again Reiju, I am not lying. Everything I have said has been to the best of my knowledge true," I replied before adding, "And I've already told you, if you really want to kill me that bad, then feel free to try. Should you succeed and survive doing so, then I wish you the best of luck in finding your brother. If you're that desperate to be rid of me, then I'll give you however much money you think you'll need and my best guess at a heading."
Reiju actually stopped in her tracks and stared at me, "What?"
I stopped and turned to look at her, "You heard me. If you want to go by yourself, then I won't stop you. You can have half the money I've got left, the guns and the boat, plus everything we bought for you this morning and the supplies. I hope to see you smiling at the Baratie when we get there."
Reiju stared at me for a moment, "You're serious."
I started checking bags, "Aaand you're about to take everything I just offered you and run. Sad, but reasonable. Let's see, this is yours, this is yours, ah, didn't know you bought that…very sexy," I declared as I flicked a glance at her before returning to sorting the bags, "Aaand this appears to be the last bag of things for you I have. Please hold while I get you some money."
Reiju made no move to accept the bags, she was still just staring at me. I hooked the bags on my thumb and gently waved my hand, "Reeeijuuu…are you still in there?"
Reiju frowned at me, "You're…serious. You dragged me all the way out here and now you're just giving me supplies, your weapons and money and your boat, just completely willing to let me sail off into the distance knowing you might never see me again?"
I frowned at her, "Reiju, of course I'll see you again. Even if you don't go find the Baratie and run back to Germa, I'll see you in two years when we kick Big Mom's door in to get our cook back."
"And what if I take Sanji and run?" Reiju asked quickly, "What if we're not there when you get to the Baratie? What if we've already run away and disappeared into the wind?"
I gave her a very flat look and then I smiled as kindly as I could, "Then good luck. I hope the rest of your life is a happy one, please give Sanji my best regards, and enjoy the hell out of his cooking for me. We'll just have to make do without him. I'll just have to handle the opponents he would have myself. I don't have the same morals he does, so at least a few of them should be a bit easier for me than they would've been for him."
"Why?" Reiju demanded quietly. I blinked. Head down, teeth clenched, fists clenched, is she shaking?
"Reiju…?"
"GODDAMMIT WHY?!" Reiju demanded as she jerked her head up and I saw tears welling in her eyes, "You said it's because I'm beautiful and because you think I deserve better and because you wanted to help me, but I'm the fucking crown princess and I have armies of men who will throw their lives away for me in a heartbeat and money beyond the wildest dreams of commoners and connections and everything a person could want, and yes I'm beautiful. I'm gorgeous. I know that, but goddammit none of that is a reason to help me! Are you just trying to get in my pants? Do you want me to feel indebted to you? Are you trying to ransom me? I don't know! And it's driving me crazy! WHAT. DO. YOU. WANT. FROM. ME?!"
I glanced around at the people on the street who'd stopped to stare at Reiju's outburst. I raised my voice, "Government business. Move along and forget what you heard or take it up with Captain Morgan!"
The street cleared instantly as though I'd whipped out a cannon and threatened to start blasting.
"Government?" Reiju sniffled.
"Princesses count as government," I replied, "And quite frankly if any of them want to bring that bastard Morgan out here to me, I'll just tear him to pieces a little bit ahead of schedule. Now as for your question," I sighed, "Look Reiju, I'm not a good person. I've got a little bit more empathy than your brothers but not a hell of a lot. I try to be a good person, but there's nothing but a lump of coal where my heart should be. I had good morals hammered into me from a young age. I try to be honest and helpful even though deep down I really don't care about anybody. What Judge did to you and your family goes against everything I was ever taught, everything I believe in and it is completely unacceptable to me. If not for the fact that doing so would've caused more strife than it solved, I'd have brought your brothers out here too. If I could fix what Judge did to them, I would, but I can't. You're the only one I could save right now from that particular tragedy, and protecting even one person from a bit of suffering is the right thing to do."
"You want the god's honest truth?" I asked quietly, "I want to remember how to care again Reiju. My pride is all that's kept me going for years, and I was only able to cling to that because I knew it was my only lifeline. I want to enjoy life again. I want to wake up in the morning and actually be excited by the fact that a new day is starting. I'm freakin' depressed Reiju, and I know you are too no matter how much or how well you hide it. Misery loves company, but I'd never begrudge someone a chance at a happiness. That's the motto of my people: Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. I hope having the second two can help you learn to enjoy the first again, and maybe now that I'm here, I can do the same.
"What do I want from you Reiju? Honestly?" I made a little helpless gesture, "I just want a chance to make you smile. Even if I never get to see it, if I can make you smile again, a real smile, not that poker face crap," I added as I pushed the corners of my own mouth up into a smile, "then I'm happy. Makes me feel like there's some shred of validity to my existence. If you were to leave right now and I never see you again, I'll tell myself you're better off until such time as I'm proven wrong. If I find out you're in trouble and there's even a ghost of a chance I can make it in time, then I'll come save you."
Reiju looked at me through watery eyes for what seemed like a long time and then she stepped forward and thunked her head into the center of my chest, "You're insane. You're a deluded, depressed idiot with a hero complex trying to be a knight in shining armor to sweep me off my feet and carry me away from Germa to live a happy life and be all noble and not even care if you benefit from it because you're that crazy that you'd do something like this for someone like me… just because it's the right thing to do and helping me will make you feel like you're not some worthless shell?"
I sighed and smiled faintly, "Yes Reiju, I thought we had already established that I'm a complete and utter basket case."
"People like that don't exist," Reiju declared quietly.
"Talented people dealing with depression and an acute awareness that they're not living up to their own ideals, slowly fading away into an empty shell of their former selves until we're left alone and bitter in our old age looking back on the wreckage we called a life, begging the whole time for a chance to do something worthwhile that'll make some kind of mark on history so that we can tell ourselves when it's all over that it was worth it?" I asked bluntly, "Hate to break it to ya beautiful, but I'm pretty sure we're a beri a bushel back home."
The silence started to get uncomfortable and then a voice cleared their throat next to us, I turned and found a man almost as tall as I was in a marine uniform looking decidedly uncomfortable. "She's terribly sleep deprived and she's had a rough time," I explained quietly, "Could you point us to the nearest inn? Milady needs some rest."
The man nodded, "Of course, I'll lead you right to the inn. Um, one more thing, you said something about it being government business and Captain Morgan?"
I gave him a cheery smile, "Well I was hardly going to let an entire street stand here and see Milady in such a state was I? Sometimes the most efficient option isn't the most honest. I do sincerely apologize if I've caused anyone any distress, but I'm sure everyone knows how it feels to need a moment of privacy. If clearing a street makes Milady happy, then I'll clear as many as it takes. You would do the same for the lady you care for, yes?"
The marine blushed, "I'm, not so fortunate as to have such a lady in my life, but yes. Ah, very well. No harm seems to have been done, so I'll forgo fining you for disrupting the peace provided you promise not to do it again. Please follow me this way to the inn."
I nodded, "Of course." I glanced down, "Reiju, you good to walk? You need me to carry you?"
Reiju took a deep breath and then straightened up and composed herself, "Yes, I'll be fine. You said something about an inn? I really need a shower."
The marine nodded, "Right this way."
…
An hour and a half later, Reiju stepped out of the bathroom drying her hair and clad in pink and lavender striped pajamas, "Shower's yours. Water's not hot enough for me."
I got up from the chair I'd been sitting in for the last twenty minutes with some clean clothes in hand, "How hot is hot enough?"
Reiju shot me a glance out from under the towel, "HOT."
I nodded and started walking towards the bathroom, faltering as something hit me. Immune to most physical attacks, immune to poison, in an environment where any obvious coping mechanisms would be noticed and punished…is she trying to burn herself with the water as a form of self punishment for what she did with Germa?
I shot her a glance and saw her looking back at me. Her eyes went wide when she saw the look on my face and she quickly averted her gaze, "D-don't read too much into it. The increased tolerance to heat and cold makes it hard to get a shower hot enough for my muscles to unwind. You're, not going to be looking for signs of mental illness in everything I do are you?" she asked nervously.
I blinked, and then gave her a wan little smile, "The mere fact that you caught that tells me you know the obvious signs well enough to hide them."
Reiju sniffed, "My coping mechanism is eating thank you."
I blinked and then smiled, "Good, that's one that won't hurt you."
Reiju crossed her arms and frowned at me, "Calm down, I'm not going to hurt myself. Are you a psychologist? You keep swearing up and down you're not Cipher Pol, so what were you?"
"A real estate agent actually," I declared with a small smile, "Psychology comes easily to me, but I don't care enough about people to be a good shrink and I believe rather firmly in not obstructing people seeking help. The real estate thing just kinda, happened, and turned out, I'm actually fairly decent at it."
"So despite claiming to be honest, you're also a fabulous liar," Reiju surmised.
"Probably," I admitted, "Spy stories and battles of wit, deception and intrigue excite me. The smarter the two I'm watching go at it are, the more interesting it is. Not to say a good old slug fest isn't amazing to watch too, but characters feel more formidable to me when they can get a mile out of an inch. You watch masters go at it often enough, you start to pick up a few tricks, especially when there's a third master on the sidelines explaining what the hell just happened or insights into the participants heads."
"Meaning that not only were you a good liar to start with, you've also had extensive training in how to be a manipulative bastard," Reiju mused as she sat down on the bed.
"I've had extensive training in how to be a magnificent bastard," I replied with a smug grin, "which just makes it that much more impressive that I'm still such a stand up guy don'tcha think?"
"You see," Reiju mused, "Saying things like that just makes me believe you less and think I should kill you in your sleep more."
"We've both established that we're each borderline suicidal on a good day," I replied, "and quite frankly the adrenaline rush of having you blatantly contemplating offing me is really getting my motor running. I've been in this world less than twenty four hours and I already feel more alive than I have in years."
"And insane," Reiju mused, "I almost forgot that you're completely insane."
"True," I nodded with a grin, "Very true."
"So now the question is whether or not you're working alone," Reiju declared.
"Of course not," I replied nonchalantly, prompting Reiju's eyes to widen. My grin grew, "I'm working with you ain't I?"
Reiju's jaw dropped and I turned and walked into the bathroom, pausing before I closed the door to add, "You know Reiju, it's really quite fun to watch you play 4-D chess with this imaginary devious persona you think I've got."
Before I could even start to close the door Reiju was off the bed and shooting towards me like a rocket. I reached up and caught her hands by the wrists as they went for my throat. It was quite fascinating to learn that apparently I had indeed gotten the strength boost to match my durability, and speed and perception as well. Reiju was an absolute physical beast, yet for all her struggling to get loose from my grip, it felt like she wasn't even moving.
I casually tossed her hands over my shoulder and wrapped my arms around her waist as she crashed into me. I smiled, "And here we are again at an impasse. You can poison me, but you don't know if it'll kill me quick enough to stop me from crushing you."
Reiju suddenly took hold of my head and looked me dead in the eye, "Do. Not. FUCK with me, Bones."
I sighed, the levity of teasing her had deflated like a balloon with her being legitimately upset, "Little too much teasing?"
"TEASING?!" she all but shrieked, "This is your idea of TEASING?!"
I nodded, "I'm sorry if I upset you."
"Damn you," Reiju declared sharply, "Damn you straight to hell. You're insane and you've kidnapped me and you still have the audacity to tell me you're doing it altruistically while still giggling at my expense over not knowing what kind of insane conspiracy you're working for?"
I'd already come to pity that life had made her this paranoid, but right then, I was just getting very frustrated. The momentary amusement of seeing her on a Snipe Hunt had vanished when she snapped.
I wanted to blow up. I really, really wanted to explode. It was irrational, but dammit if her frustration and refusal to believe me wasn't pissing me off too. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, another one and then I started thinking as the red haze in my head started fading.
I cracked an eye, "You won't kill me, and you won't cripple me either. That seed of doubt that I might be telling an impossible truth or at least be genuine in my admitted motivations is in your head now, so you won't do anything too permanent because you don't want to risk repaying kindness with death or crippling. So I can't offer you that because you know that I know that, and thus we both know that it would be an ostensibly safe way for me to try to manipulate you into trusting me, which would only make you even more paranoid because you know that I know.
"All the words in the world are worthless to me because you know I'm good with them," I continued, noting that Reiju was looking thoughtful now too as I rolled on. "Likewise, given you're convinced this is some kind of massive conspiracy, there isn't anything I can do to prove to you that we're even in the East Blue since if it were a massive enough conspiracy, the entire island could be faked."
Reiju's eyes widened and I smiled thinly, "Well, at least you're not that paranoid. Anyway," I sighed, "continuing on, you could also suspect that you're trapped in a devil fruit illusion since there are fruits capable of doing that, and thus might not even actually be anywhere other than your bed. You're familiar enough with keeping up a carefully crafted façade yourself that it's not inconceivable to you for me to be just that good of an actor.
"Aaand all that adds up to me having absolutely no idea how to get you to trust me," I declared. "Honestly, it would've been a hell of a lot easier for me if you took me up on that offer of parting ways I made earlier. I don't know why you stuck around, I can only guess you either trust me more than you're willing to admit to either of us, don't like the idea of taking off into unknown waters yourself, or you're hoping that by continuing to be around me you might spot a loose thread to yank and unravel whatever conspiracy you think you're seeing."
"So," I smiled, "I'm going to step in here, use the bathroom, take a shower, probably use the bathroom again when I get out, and when I step out, I hope you'll have come up with some sort of test to decide whether or not you can trust me."
Reiju pulled herself up a bit to tell me quietly in my ear, "When you step out of this bathroom, you're a dead man."
"Why wait?" I asked as I removed my hands from around her waist, "You've got your fingers on my carotid artery and your thumb on the base of my spine, poison right now would do me in in a matter of seconds, and you know bullets and physical force aren't a viable option."
Reiju's grip tightened a little and even though I couldn't see her face, I knew doubt was all over it. I stayed very still and after a few moments she told me softly, "I also know men will die for their cause if it's one they believe in."
"So the only question you need to answer is the same one we started with," I declared softly, "And no matter how unbelievable you may find it, you already have the answer."
Reiju took a deep breath, and then let go and stepped away, quickly turning away so I couldn't see her expression, "I'll see you when you get out."
I nodded, "See ya then."
…
An hour later I stepped out of the bathroom toweling my hair dry and found Reiju sitting on the bed with two of the bags stuffed suspiciously full of what looked like everything I had offered to let her take in the event she wanted to leave, and a stack of papers on the bed next to her.
"I've decided," she declared quietly, "The only way I can verify the truth of your words is if you're nowhere nearby. So, I want you to write down everything you believe will happen, in order. No cryptic bullshit, I want details. Stuff that you couldn't possibly know or arrange before hand. I will go with this supposed grandson of Garp the Hero, and if you're telling the truth, then I will see you at whatever rendezvous you believe you will be able to make and offer you my sincerest apologies for doubting you. If you are lying and this does turn out to be some sort of conspiracy, then we will never see each other again, and if we do, I will kill you."
"And if I am insane as you speculated earlier?" I asked quietly.
"If I am reunited with my brother, but everything else you say is wrong, then I will know my judgment of you is correct. You're insane…" she declared before adding so softly that I almost didn't hear her, "…but you're also hopelessly smitten with me and would do anything in the world to help me."
She jerked her head to the side and shoved her hand out with the paper and pen, pointedly looking away from me with her eyes scrunched shut and a look of anger and hurt all over her face.
I blinked in surprise as that registered and then crossed the room to accept the pen and paper, "Very well. But Reiju, understand that if I say something MUST happen and the events leading up to it occur, you need to take it very seriously. Lives will be riding on the outcomes of the events I'm about to record for you."
Reiju nodded sharply, "If you really are telling the truth about knowing the future, and everything I see lines up with what you write, then I will treat it as valid intel."
I nodded and sat cross legged in the floor, immediately beginning to write.
…
Several pages filled to the edge front and back later, I rose back to my feet and handed Reiju the papers. Reiju accepted them with a silent nod. I scratched the back of my head and exhaled, "That's everything I can remember up to Loguetown. I hope it helps you. Once you reach Baratie, things start to get dangerous. Luffy and the others should be able to resolve everything without any intervention on your part, but if Nami steals the ship at the time I mentioned, then whether you believe me or not by then, you need to treat my warnings as truth and act accordingly."
Reiju nodded, "Very well, now go."
I sighed and then plastered on a small smile as I extended a hand, "Reiju." She looked up and her eyes widened before glancing up at me. "Even if I'm completely wrong, about everything, I hope things will be better for you from now on. Best of luck to you."
Reiju's expression went from surprise to outright shock and then a small smile broke over her face as she took my and shook it, "Yeah, you too Bones."
I nodded and turned, picking up the bags and walking out the door. I managed to make it all the way down to the boat, untied it from the dock and got far enough away from Shellstown that it was just a dot on the horizon. Then I turned away and screamed my frustration to the sky before devolving into a ranting, cussing fit.
This was not how waking up in the One Piece world in time to join Luffy at the same time as Zoro with one of my favorite characters in tow was supposed to go.
"Oh relax," a voice suddenly declared from behind me, prompting me to whirl so fast I almost fell out of the boat. My eyes nearly popped out of my head as I saw who was poking their head up out from under the tarp.
.
.
.
"I believe you completely," Yamato declared as she sat up and gave me the smuggest grin that did very interesting things to my pulse once my heart remembered I was supposed to have one, "So, what's our heading, partner?"
Link: https://m.fanfiction.net/s/13886675/1/The-Princess-and-the-Prophet