"Thank you for saving us, Miss Love Duck," Ben said with a grateful nod, glancing at the ship around them.
"She really did come through for us," Saphir agreed, still catching her breath.
"She even warned us of the danger before it happened," Nojiko chimed in, gently putting Kalifa into a chair.
"It's incredible... Miss Love Duck has a soul," Maya murmured with awe, clasping her hands together in a prayer of gratitude.
"I wonder where she disappeared to?" Mikita wondered aloud, glancing around the ship.
"Maybe she's just a bit shy," Zala suggested with a small smile.
"We should make things more welcoming, so she feels comfortable coming out," Conis added thoughtfully.
"Yeah! We could play games together or something," Marianne said.
"That sounds fun, we can go camping," Robin replied.
The other girls smiled. They thought it was Robin's unique humor.
"Master, the Miss Love Duck will steer us to safety," HQ reported. Ben nodded.
Ben stood before the girls, a proud smile on his face as he looked at each of them. "You all fought hard today," he began. "Blood was spilled, sweat dripped, and every one of you gave it your all. We faced impossible odds, and yet, you all never gave up," he continued. He paused, and looked around. They all were smiling and blushing. "We worked together, shoulder to shoulder, putting our lives on the line. We stood firm, no matter how tough things got. And because of that, we pulled through," he shouted.
Ben's expression softened. "We saved Robin. We brought her back to us, to our crew, to our family. "I am so proud of each and every one of you. You showed what it means to be a crew. I love you all," he added,
The girls all smiled. "We would have done it for any one of us. We are sisters, we all love each other and you," Vivi stated.
"Well said," Raki said.
"Perfect," Nojiko added.
"He has his way of words," Kaya remarked. They all nodded.
At that moment, Kalifa slowly awakened, her eyelids fluttering open as the sharp sting of pain coursed through her body. She had lost to Nojiko, to the Love Pirates. Usually she hates when she loses but she felt happy to lose this time. It felt like a burden had gone away. She heard Ben`s voice. The speech he gave was nice to her ears. She thought harassment.
Kalifa lay on the chair. She thought he spoke of strength and love. It felt genuine and heartfelt. Everything she heard was about deception and working in the shadows. His words made her heart skip. She thought sexual harassment.
Her cheeks flushed slightly and she moved up. "My love she is awake," Alvida pointed out.
"She is in bad shape, we should help her," Vivi said.
"She is still bleeding," Maya commented, looking at the blood on her forehead.
Ben approached Kalifa. "Hello Kalifa, I am," Ben was about to introduce himself.
"Ben of the Love Pirates, the true Captain of the Love Pirates," Kalifa replied.
"So you know?" Ben asked.
"That is strange, most of the people I ran into said, Alvida was the Captain," Conis added.
"They still do think that," Kalifa said.
"But you had worked it out," Zala replied.
"She is smart," Marianne said.
"Yes, I am the Captain of the Love Pirates, this is my crew, there are some more and I want you to join us Kalifa," Ben stated.
Kalifa looked surprised hearing that but she was not at the same time. "I was your enemy," Kalifa.
"Welcome to the club," Robin responded with a large smile on her face.
"Half the crew could be considered in your position," Zala replied. She added, "Including me."
"It does not matter what we did in the past, this is the present and we have the future. In that future, I want you to be with us," Ben began. "You are a beautiful, smart, strong lady, I want you to join us, be part of the Love Pirates," Ben stated.
Kalifa's heart skipped a beat. "That is sexual harassment," Kalifa replied, touching her glasses. She got up and got to her knees. "But ever since I saw your picture, I thought about you and only you. You made my night sleepless. I thought something like this could happen. Please let me join your crew," Kalifa replied.
"Sure, thank you," Ben replied as he picked her up. "You don't need to bow," Ben added as he touched her waist.
"That is sexual harassment," Kalifa replied as she smiled.
"Pervert," Kaya commented. The girls smiled.
"Kalifa, I'm sorry for hurting you," Nojiko apologized, her voice sincere. "I know you let me win as well," she added with a slight smile.
Kalifa raised an eyebrow, a faint smile playing at her lips. "Apology accepted. I am sorry for hurting you, but did I really let you win?" she replied, a playful glint in her eyes.
Nojiko chuckled, meeting Kalifa's gaze. "Maybe a little," she teased.
Kalifa laughed softly, the tension between them easing. "Maybe I did, maybe I didn't," she replied.
Ben smiled, they were getting along. "Thank you all. My sisters, my crew, my love," Robin said, looking at Ben.
"Kalifa, I want you to teach me the Six Power Technique later. I think they will be useful for me and all the girls to know as well," Ben ordered.
"My love, we would like to have our girls talk with Kalifa now, please leave the room," Alvida firmly said.
"Should you all not try to rest and get patched up," Ben replied.
"I can do it here," Kaya responded.
Robin walked towards Ben and grabbed his arm. "Lets go Captain, it is the rules," Robin said with a large smile on her face.
"Don't break him," Raki teased.
"He is tough," Vivi said as she blushed.
"We would know," Nojiko added.
Ben and Robin walked down to the Captain's room and entered. Robin led the way. She looked like she was on a mission.