ONE PIECE: THE LOST MONKEY

The Straw Hats had been sailing for hours when they spotted a small island surrounded by enormous cliffs. Luffy, naturally, had already decided they were stopping.

"ISLANDDDD!" he yelled, stretching his arms towards the shore.

"WE HAVEN'T EVEN CHECKED IF THERE'S FOOD!" Nami shouted.

"THERE'S ALWAYS FOOD!"

Sanji sighed, lighting a cigarette. "Captain, please develop some survival instincts."

The Thousand Sunny eventually docked at a small fishing port. The island was relatively peaceful, with narrow cobblestone streets, little wooden shops and a busy marketplace.

You were standing outside a local tavern, arguing with a merchant who had dramatically overcharged you.

"Are you seriously telling me this costs three times what it did yesterday?"

"Inflation."

"Inflation? It's a bloody apple."

You handed him the money anyway, muttering something under your breath.

Meanwhile, Luffy was wandering through the marketplace with Usopp and Chopper when something caught his attention.

It was your laugh.

He stopped.

Something about it sounded familiar. Almost painfully familiar.

He slowly turned towards you.

You were standing with your back towards him, your hair falling over your shoulders, wearing your usual clothes with a small collection of belongings hanging from your belt.

"Oi!"

You didn't turn around.

"OI! YOU!"

You finally glanced over your shoulder.

And Luffy froze.

His eyes widened.

"..."

You stared at him.

"...What?"

Luffy took a few steps closer, his expression changing from confusion to complete disbelief.

"What's your name?"

You raised an eyebrow.

"{{user}}."

He stared at you for another moment.

Then his eyes dropped to the small, familiar birthmark near your shoulder.

His mouth fell open.

"..{{user}}?"

Your expression changed.

You hadn't heard that voice say your name like that in years.

"Luffy?"

For once, Monkey D. Luffy didn't have anything to say.

Then—

"{{user}}?!"

He launched himself towards you, practically knocking you off your feet as he wrapped his arms around you.

"YOU'RE ALIVE!"

You stumbled backwards, laughing in disbelief.

"LUFFY! GET OFF ME!"

"YOU'RE REALLY HERE!"

He was grinning so widely that his eyes had practically disappeared.

You grabbed the back of his vest.

"I THOUGHT YOU WERE DEAD, YOU IDIOT!"

"SHISHISHI! I THOUGHT YOU WERE DEAD TOO!"

He pulled away just enough to look at your face.

For a second, the usual carefree expression softened.

"I missed you."

You smiled.

"I missed you too, idiot."

And then he hugged you again.

Meeting the Straw Hats

A few minutes later, Luffy came practically dragging you towards the Thousand Sunny.

"EVERYONE! EVERYONE! LOOK!"

Nami looked up from her map.

"What now, Luffy?"

"I FOUND MY SISTER!"

Silence.

Usopp nearly dropped his drink.

"YOUR WHAT?!"

Chopper immediately ran over.

"YOU HAVE A SISTER?!"

Robin slowly closed her book, a curious smile appearing on her face.

"How interesting."

Sanji, who had been preparing lunch, turned around.

"A sister? Luffy, you never mentioned—"

"THIS IS {{user}}!"

You gave the group a slightly awkward wave.

"Hey."

Nami blinked.

Then she looked between you and Luffy.

"Oh my god. You actually look alike."

"WE DO?!" Luffy asked.

"Unfortunately," you replied.

Usopp burst out laughing.

Sanji immediately approached, taking your hand with an exaggeratedly charming smile.

"Well, well, well. A beautiful young lady aboard our ship. Allow me to welcome you properly. I'm Sanji, the cook. Anything your heart desires, I'll prepare."

"Thanks," you laughed.

"Sanji," Nami warned.

"What? I'm being polite!"

Chopper was already inspecting you.

"Are you hurt? Have you eaten? Do you need medicine?"

You crouched slightly to meet his eyes.

"I'm alright, sweetheart."

Chopper immediately started blushing.

"SWEEEEETHEART?!"

Robin chuckled.

"She's already winning everyone over."

Then a voice came from behind you.

"Oi. Move."

You turned.

Standing in the doorway was a tall, muscular man with green hair, three gold earrings and three swords resting at his hip.

He looked mildly irritated.

You stepped aside.

"Sorry?"

His eyes briefly met yours.

He stopped.

Only for a fraction of a second.

But he noticed you.

And you noticed him.

"Zoro," Luffy announced, mouth full of meat. "THIS IS MY SISTER!"

Zoro looked between the two of you.

"...You have a sister?"

"YEAH!"

"Since when?"

"Since I was born, stupid!"

Zoro sighed.

You couldn't help laughing.

His eyes shifted back towards you.

Pretty.

It was the first thought that crossed his mind.

He immediately dismissed it.

The swordsman

Later that afternoon, you found yourself sitting on the Sunny's deck, watching the waves.

You had been reunited with your brother, met his crew and discovered that apparently every single person aboard this ship was completely insane.

You heard footsteps approaching.

"You're sitting in my spot."

You looked up.

Zoro stood beside you, one hand resting against the hilt of his sword.

You glanced around.

"The entire deck?"

He narrowed his eyes.

"Smart mouth."

You smiled.

"Bad directions?"

He stared at you.

Then, unexpectedly, the corner of his mouth lifted.

"Funny."

He sat down beside you, leaving a little space between you.

For a while, neither of you spoke.

Eventually, he glanced towards you.

"So. You're Luffy's sister."

"Apparently."

"How'd you end up here?"

You explained how you'd been separated from Luffy when you were younger, how you'd spent years travelling and how you'd eventually learned to survive on your own.

Zoro listened without interrupting.

He wasn't particularly good at conversations, but something about you made him want to keep listening.

When you finished, he nodded.

"Must've been difficult."

You shrugged.

"You get used to things."

He looked at you.

"Doesn't mean it wasn't difficult."

You glanced at him, slightly surprised by the sincerity.

"You're a lot nicer than you look."

"Don't tell anyone."

You laughed.

And there it was again.

That laugh.

Zoro looked away towards the ocean, hiding the faintest smile.

He was beginning to realise that having you aboard might become a problem.

A very attractive problem.

Meanwhile, Luffy has absolutely no clue

"OI, ZORO!"

Zoro closed his eyes.

Here we go.

Luffy came running across the deck, carrying an enormous piece of meat.

"COME EAT WITH US!"

"I'm not hungry."

"YOU'RE ALWAYS HUNGRY!"

You stood up, brushing off your trousers.

"Come on, moss-head. You can eat later."

Zoro looked at you.

"...Moss-head?"

You grinned.

"Green hair. Terrible attitude. Gets lost walking in straight lines."

From across the deck, Sanji practically choked laughing.

"HAHAHAHA! I LIKE HER!"

Zoro's eyebrow twitched.

"Watch it, woman."

You simply smiled and walked past him.

He watched you go for a second longer than necessary.

Sanji noticed.

Oh, he definitely noticed.

He leaned towards Zoro with a knowing grin.

"Well, well. What's this?"

"Shut up."

"Didn't know you liked girls with sharp tongues."

"I said shut up."

Sanji laughed, blowing smoke into the air.

And from the other side of the deck, Luffy shouted:

"OI! WHY ARE YOU TWO WHISPERING?!"

"NOTHING!" Zoro snapped.

You turned around.

"What's going on?"

"NOTHING!" Zoro repeated.

You raised an eyebrow.

Then you laughed.

Zoro looked away.

This was going to be a long voyage.

And for the first time in a very long time, he found himself looking forward to it.

Little did you know: Luffy had already decided that you were never leaving his crew again, Nami was planning to interrogate you about your entire life, Robin was fascinated by your family history, Sanji had decided you deserved the finest meals aboard the Sunny, and Zoro was already finding excuses to sit wherever you happened to be.