Chapter Text
On an island west of Orange Town.
The larger the man, the slower he is. Juni knew that.
The man behind her was incredibly muscular. A beast of a man that towered over her. He had hair all over, and only two teeth not rotted. Despite the difference in height, she could still smell his heavy breath on her face. That breath was putrid; humid like a hot summer’s day. She almost couldn’t bear being near him. Almost.
She had watched him win a bet. Crouched silently in an alleyway as he boasted about being unbeatable. His ale spilled onto the cobblestone street as he waved the bottle about, spewing nonsense about strength and ability. It was sickening, but she wanted his money.
He accepted her challenge almost immediately. He set his ale down, wiped the froth from his upper lip and pointed towards the edge of the city.
“You get to the port before me. I’ll give you the satchel.”
She smiled, already knowing how easy the game was going to be. Her long legs could easily overpower his heavily muscular ones. One of his lackey’s shot a bullet into the air, a signal for them to begin.
Her opponent stumbled forward, tripping over his feet as he ran and she flew right by him. Her feet were feathers, light in weight, carrying her gently. The man ate her dust immediately.
She felt free as the wind circled her, bending around her as she burst forward. Any person walking by wouldn’t have even seen her pass, that’s how quick she was.
Monkey D. Luffy wasn’t any person.
He felt the breeze of her speed as she passed by him in the street. An awe fell over his face as he spun around to catch sight of her sprinting figure as she turned a corner.
He followed, desperate to see more of her. He was desperate to catch the nimble woman.
Roronoa Zoro had no choice but to follow as his new travel companion grabbed him by the wrist and began to drag him in pursuit of the woman.
“Did you see her run by!?” Luffy exclaimed in amusement. He quickened his pace more just to catch up with her. “I didn’t even see her face, that’s how fast she was!”
“Yeah Luffy I saw.” Zoro yelled back, sputtering as he was pulled through a pile of empty crates. “Slow down a bit, will you?”
His Captain ignored him, grinning from ear to ear as he finally spotted the woman.
She leaned confidently against the side of a building, waiting for her competitor to finally catch up. Not catching sight of the men watching her in awe, she spun her axe lazily between her fingers, the blade swiping smoothly through the air.
Luffy whispered, “Zoro, do you see that? She’s got a giant axe.”
“Yes I saw it.” The swordsman sighed.
It was truly a sight to behold. Smithed to perfection with a handle engraved by hand. It was double-bladed, and stood as tall as her, yet she swung it as if it were carved from feathers. The steel was freshly sharpened, and the handle showed signs of care. Zoro had to hand it to her, she knew her way around the weapon.
The pair watched her wait for about half an hour before the giant man came careening from a nearby alley. They both stared at each other, neither one saying a word. Juni didn’t know what he was thinking, but she knew from his lethal expression that it couldn’t be good.
He didn’t speak. Not one word. Instead, he fell slowly towards the ground. Face first into the rickety dock they both stood on. A low groan came from his lungs and she stepped forward, kicking him to test for any movement. He didn’t budge. She whistled to herself and plucked the small coin pouch from his belt. Throwing it up in the air and catching it, she sauntered back towards the town.
Zoro didn’t approve of chasing after the poor woman. In fact, it was his personal opinion that they do not attempt any contact with her. In what world would she want to join two guys in a rowboat?
Luffy disagreed, already hot on her tail, waving his hand in excitement. Luffy had always been discerning. He had a good sense of character. Despite his childish demeanor, he was far more intuitive than one would think. “Hey!! Axe girl.” He laughed, standing in front of her to stop her from walking.
Juni was stunned, wary of why this man would stop her so suddenly. At first she assumed he had caught her rifling through the defeated man’s pockets. Desperate to be far from the eye of the public, she was almost ready to run. But, then Zoro stepped forward. She studied him, Luffy’s incessant noise wavering in the background. Three swords at his hip, mint green hair, and three earrings dangled from one ear. He looked indifferent to her. He was yawning, scratching the back of his neck. God, he looked familiar. Her eyes roamed down his muscular figure in admiration before he caught her, and grinned. She blushed a deep red and looked away. He didn’t look like a marine. Neither did the other one.
The other boy was much different. Lanky, a worn out hat atop his head, and a scar just below his left eye. He was adorable. She almost reached out to pinch his cheek.
She shook her head, finally looking down to meet the eyes of the boy. “I’m sorry, who are you?”
He grinned up at her and tipped his straw hat. “I’m Monkey D. Luffy and I’m gonna be King of the Pirates.”
---
Juni watched as he swallowed an entire bone. The shape of the bone protruded from his throat. It made her feel ill. Her initial impression of the pirates had been impartial, but the more she interacted with them, she felt herself beginning to grow a liking to them.
Luffy’s dream was ridiculous, so was Zoro’s, but both of them spoke with such passion that just maybe she could be convinced. It reminded her of herself, a long time ago.
Luffy rambled on about his plans to be King of the Pirates and his mission to enter the grand line while Zoro stayed silent. He found a way to be likeable as a man of little words, and she respected that.
Zoro could see how the woman across from him would be a good addition to their team. She was funny. She was attentive. He admired her agility, and he didn’t mind the way her face looked. The thought made him flinch. He didn’t have time for distractions, so he forced himself to guide his focus back to the table. He stared intently at a small stain on the wooden surface.
“You were so fast out there! It was like you were flying. How do you do that?” Luffy leaned forward on his elbows, admiring the woman in front of him. He needed her on his crew.
“It was just running.”
“Yeah, but fast running.” Luffy grinned incredibly wide. Juni was scared it would get stuck like that. “I barely saw you run by!”
She chuckled softly at his excitement. “While I appreciate the complement, I assure you it was nothing special.”
Luffy shook his head. “You’re trying to be humble. It isn’t working. I still want you to join my crew.”
“Right. Your two person crew that only came to be about two days ago.” She said, looking between them both. Zoro wouldn’t even make eye contact with her anymore, while Luffy just nodded.
“Yep! We fought this marine guy with an axe in his hand and then Zoro agreed to join my crew.”
Juni blinked, putting two and two together. “You fought Axe-hand Morgan. You?”
“You’d be surprised.” Zoro mumbled, sipping quietly on a bottle of sake.
She leaned back, quirked a brow, and crossed her arms. “What’s in it for me, if I join your crew?” She finally asked. Her curious nature getting the best of her.
“Like I said, I’m gonna be King of the Pirates. Zoro is gonna be the world’s greatest swordsman and I’m gonna make sure that happens.” His face turned to stone, determination reaching every muscle. “Whatever your dream is, I’ll make that happen too.”
Her expression went cold at the implication. “I don’t have a dream. That’s foolish.”
“Everyone has a dream.” Luffy laughed in disbelief, waving her off.
“Well, not me.” Juni stood. Her chair scraped against the wooden floor of the restaurant. She tossed some coins onto the table. “Thanks for the offer. Lunch is on me. Look, I like you guys, but I don’t think I’d be a suitable pirate. I’m not exactly a fan of gold.” Her curls swayed as she turned away, the wooden boards creaked under her feet as she exited the restaurant.
Luffy turned to Zoro as the woman strayed out of view. “What do you think?”
“I think you’ve already made up your mind.” Zoro said lazily. He had known the boy for maybe a week and could already read him like a book. Either way, he would be seeing the woman again.
“Sure have! She’s gonna be our third member. You saw how cool that axe was. We need her.”
“What we need is a navigator and a better boat. Not a girl with a cool axe.”
“We’ll find that later. I want the axe woman.”
“She told us her name Luffy.” Zoro groaned in response, but Luffy was already chasing after her.
---
The man from earlier that day had brought friends. Weaker men, but a fairly large number of them. They varied in size and appearance, but they all shared the same putrid smell.
Juni clenched her jaw, she wouldn’t run from this. She couldn’t. She would never run. Not again.
Her fingers tightened around the smooth wooden handle of her axe. She had to crane her neck to look at him. He might have been bigger and stronger, but she still knew she was faster.
His fist came towards her head. Before she could even block the man’s strike, another fist came shooting from behind her. It knocked the man clean into his goons. The fist retracted and she followed its path back to its owner. Luffy was standing kilometres away from her. His fists were clenched and he had a grimace on his lips. “You beat him, he should respect that.” Juni could’ve sworn she was seeing things. Had his arm really stretched?
“I can handle it.” She sneered, not entirely happy being treated as a damsel in distress.
“So, why aren’t you?” Zoro swooped in, blocking a hit behind her. He swung his blade into the man’s chest and kicked him to the ground. “Don’t you know it’s dishonourable to attack when someone’s back is turned? Fight like a real man.” He gritted out as he brought the man down.
Luffy leaped forward, tackling another man to the ground. He seemed to be enjoying the fight. Every punch he’d land would make his smile even bigger.
Juni was in awe. Fighting alongside them was the most comfortable she’d felt in battle. They each danced to the same tune, each move felt perfectly choreographed. She’d swing her axe after each of Luffy’s blows and Zoro would land the finishing attack.
As the final man collapsed to the ground, Luffy turned to her once more. “C’mon! Our boat is this way.”
“I told you, I’m not a pirate.” She said in disbelief, wiping the blood from her blade. His insistence was admirable, but she couldn’t dedicate herself to something so easily. “I can’t join you. I’d be making a promise I can’t keep.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Luffy scratched his head. “Whatever you need to do we’ll help and then you can join our crew!”
“It’s not that simple.” She shook her head.
Luffy wouldn’t listen.
Somehow she found herself sitting across from Zoro as he rowed, on a tiny boat in the middle of the East Blue. He rowed effortlessly and she had trouble listening to the nonsense Luffy was spewing as they floated further from the small island.
“You know there’s a sail right?” She finally asked them. Her tone carried a sarcastic teasing. “You don’t need to row.”
The two looked up and blinked. “Oh yeah.”
“You’re telling me you never noticed?!” She cried out in disbelief. Her decision to board the boat started to feel like a bad one. “Please tell me you at least have supplies, like rations.”
“We do.” Zoro puffed out his chest confidently, not ready to look like a fool once more.
Luffy melted to the floor. “I ate them.” He admitted.
They stared back at him angrily. “What do you mean you ate the rations?”
“I couldn’t help myself.” He shrugged.
Juni lunged at him, but Zoro was quick to wrap his arms around her torso and pull her back. “Relax, I just saw a bird fly by. We'll catch it and it could feed us for a couple days.”
Her limbs relaxed and she put her hands up in surrender. His strong arms lowered her to the ground. She patted his shoulder amicably and turned to see Luffy already stretching his arms out towards the large bird. “This isn’t gonna end well is it?”
“C’mon have faith in your captain.” Zoro put his hands on his hips.
“Still don’t know if I’m willing to call him that.” She grumbled back.
Zoro had to eat his words as Luffy’s head lodged into the beak of the giant bird. They could hear his screams echoing from above. His arms flailed violently as they screamed from below.
“Shit, start paddling!” Juni rushed to pull the oars into the water. She pushed Zoro down to the ground and slammed the oars into his hands. “I’ll direct you.”
Zoro grumbled something about not taking orders from someone so bossy, but she put a finger to his lips. “There’s some guys in the water. Don’t stop for them.”
He barely heard what she said. Zoro wasn’t exactly a magnet for women’s attention, let alone their proximity. He wasn’t sure whether it was because of her, or a deep unfamiliarity with women themselves, but he found his palms beginning to get clammy and his stomach lurching slightly.
She called out to the pirates treading water in front of them. “If you want help, you’ll have to find a way onto the boat yourself!”
They frantically splashed around, yelling and panicking in the water. Their hands could be heard smacking against the sides of the small boat.
Surprisingly, they were able to climb aboard.
Zoro nodded his head in approval before Juni focused her attention back into the sky. “I think he landed on that island up ahead.” She pointed, reaching down to pat his shoulder and change direction.
Zoro didn’t answer.
“Are you still mad about the oar thing? Get over it you baby-”
“Stop the boat, now.”
She felt a dull blade against her spine. It was almost laughable.
“We’re Buggy the clown’s pirate crew, and this boat is now ours.”
“If you’re gonna threaten me, you should at least make sure your sword can break skin.” She scoffed. Her hand snaked behind her to grab ahold of the blade. She knocked it out of the man’s hand and quickly picked up the one in the middle. She dangled him over the edge of the boat. “Your captain. Is he on that island?”
The man nodded meekly, his companions now rowing the boat for Zoro.
“Guess that means Luffy’s been dropped into a sticky situation.” She hummed. She threw the man back into the boat. “Row a bit faster will you? I’ve got someone to save.”