"What the hell is this?" Cherry asked with a scowl.
"My hubby would prefer to meet you all in formal wear," Chiffon explained.
"A cocktail dress is not formal wear," Cherry pointed out.
"It is for gangsters," Chiffon shrugged. "It's too late to tailor something else for you anyways."
"Why did you get this for me and not Carrot then?" Cherry complained childishly.
"Nami said this was what you wanted," Chiffon said.
Cherry turned a glare and a pout at Nami, who turned her head away and whistled innocently.
"Ugh, whatever. I'll just wear my armor; that's formal enough, right?" Cherry said.
"We're going to negotiate an alliance, wearing armor makes it look like we're going to war. You can't wear it," Nami denied.
"Bege already knows I can tear him and his whole crew apart with my bare hands; my armor won't make any difference," Cherry argued.
"I'll tattle to Robin," Nami threatened.
Cherry narrowed her eyes. "You're bluffing. I've got all that money in my pockets, so maybe I should misplace it?"
"Fine, wear the armor, but it wouldn't kill you to wear something nice every now and then," Nami huffed and crossed her arms in exaggerated disappointment.
"I wish I could wear armor, it looks so cool!" Carrot gushed.
"..." Cherry paused, then sighed.
…
Nami and Cherry walked out of the dressing room wearing cocktail dresses, the former looking smug and the latter looking supremely uncomfortable.
Carrot marched out with a pep in her step, also with a fair amount of clanking metal plates and clinking metal rings. "This is so COOL! Thanks for letting me borrow it, Cherry!"
"Yeah yeah, anything for you, food buddy," Cherry smiled in spite of herself. "It looks great on you, I'll make a set especially for you sometime."
Carrot bounced in excitement, giving a garchu to Cherry in thanks.
"I don't know what you were so worried about. You look great in that dress," Chiffon complimented.
"That's what she hates most about wearing dresses," Nami said. "I think it's because she hates being seen as a beautiful woman before a powerful warrior."
"No I don't. I hate how breezy they are and the way men gawk at me when I wear them," Cherry admitted. "And first the first thing people should see me as is a world infamous criminal who might kick them in the ba-"
Cherry was interrupted by a hard rap on her noggin by Nami. "Don't be so crude!"
"Look at her, trying to mother me like one of the boys," Cherry half whispered to Chiffon. "They grow up so fast, I swear. Be sure to cherish the early years with little Pez."
Cherry smirked as she saw Nami squint her eyes and purse her lips dangerously at her.
"WHAT?! No fair!" Luffy appeared from the men's side of the bath and pointed an accusing finger at Carrot.
Carrot smiled knowingly at him and struck a knightly pose, which only further stoked the fires of Luffy's jealousy.
"Cherry! Did you finish my armor yet?!" Luffy demanded.
"Sorry, Luffy. I was busy arming the minks and didn't have the time to make the armor sets that you guys designed," Cherry betrayed his expectations. "Can't exactly do a proper forging session on a wooden ship, after all. Unless all you want is something whipped up to look like armor. I can do that with my fusion fruit easily; it just wouldn't be authentic, a costume essentially."
"Hmmmmmmm…" Luffy looked truly conflicted at that moment. He carefully weighed the options before disappointedly saying, "I want the authentic armor…"
"I thought you might," Cherry nodded. "I did finish Chopper's armor, though."
"You did?!" "No fair!" Chopper and Luffy exclaimed at once.
Soon Chopper was wearing his very own set of shining armor and Luffy was pouting with the most outrageously puffed up cheeks anyone has ever seen.
They all marched into a lounge where Bege was lighting up a cigar and waiting for them. "It's about time. You kept me waiting."
The serious atmosphere shattered as Pez squealed in delight at the sight of his mother and Bege similarly gushed over his wife. Once Chiffon had Pez in her hands, Bege returned to his 'serious business' persona.
Everyone settled into the circle of fancy leather arm chairs and couches.
"Now, why don't you tell me why I should bother to ally with you instead of just silencing you on here and now?" Bege not so vaguely threatened.
"Cut the 'I'm the big boy in the big boy britches here' crap, Bege. You can't kill Sanji because it's his wedding tomorrow that you're planning to use for your little assassination attempt, you can't kill Luffy because he's stronger than you, and you can't kill me because I'll make sure that little Pez doesn't ever have any siblings if you try it," Cherry laid out.
Bege looked like someone shat in his corn flakes and his men looked downright murderous. Fortunately for the goons in the room, they had enough restraint and sense not to immediately attack Cherry for her rude words.
"Ahem, your point about Blackleg is certainly true," Bege acceded.
"We didn't come here to fight or taunt Bege, Cherry. Be diplomatic," Jinbe said in exasperation.
"You're right of course, Jinbe," Cherry said.
Jinbe thought that that was far too easy, but he wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Unbeknownst to him, Bege was building an image of a Cherry in his head that could be reined in by her comrades, exactly according to Cherry's plan.
"There's no need to make this complicated. We're going to kill Big Mom at the wedding tomorrow, are you in or not?" Bege asked bluntly.
"And we're saving Germa at the same time," Sanji added.
"Does he speak for you, Straw Hat?" Bege asked, without even looking at Sanji.
"Yeah," Luffy answered seriously and wearing an equally serious expression. He was still a bit miffed about not having his armor yet, after all.
"Fine, we have an accord," Bege put his hand out.
Luffy grasped it and after a brief hand crushing contest they were satisfied.
"How exactly do you intend to kill Big Mom, anyways. I haven't been her for long, but even I know that her skin is nigh impenetrable. Guns and cannons aren't going to cut it, and that seems to be your whole schtick," Sanji expressed his doubts.
"We've come up with a way to pierce her thick hide; but even then it's as you say, guns and cannons aren't going to cut it," Bege explained. "We have these."
Bege motioned to his men who put down a briefcase onto the coffee table between them and opened it revealing three colorful bazookas with oversized hypodermic needles on the ends.
"It would have been better to have Caesar's help," Bege shot them a dirty look. "But the poison cocktail we've created ought to do the job or if not, then at least greatly weaken Big Mom."
"Poison, you're going to use poison? Heavens above…" Cherry rubbed her temples as if she had come down with a mean headache.
"You got a better idea? Big Mom is still only human and we've got enough poison in each one of those bazookas to kill a giant," Bege defended.
Cherry opened her mouth, then Nami shot her a look so she closed it and sat back with her arms crossed.
"I thought not," Bege smiled victoriously.