Come on, you idiot! Say something! Anything!

I stared up at Kid with wide eyes. It had been six whole months since I had last seen him, and I had almost forgotten what he had looked like. Not really, but he truly seemed different than I remembered. The scars he had received upon his face from his fight with Rockstar had healed nicely, streaking down the left side like bolts of lightning. All I could do was blink up at him as he held me in his arms.

Wait...Arms? Plural?

Tearing my eyes away from his face to peer behind me, I realised that he did, in fact, have two arms again. One made of flesh and bone, the other an amalgamation of fine, smoothed steel. That explained the strange feeling of simultaneous hot and cold when I had landed.

"Uh...thanks, Kid..." I forced myself to finally speak, wriggling about until he finally set me down on my feet. I was dripping wet from the hips upward, but that wasn't what bothered me right now. Slipping and sliding a little in the puddle that was forming beneath my boots, I rushed to the railing to look back at Scrap Island.

Killer was mowing down Marine after Marine, and at a much faster rate than he had been when I was down there with him. Had he been being more careful to make sure I was safe?
"He's fine. It's just the ship that's a pain in the ass." Kid stepped up beside me, giving me a nudge with that big metal appendage of his. "Back up, unless ya wanna get clocked in the head."

As bitter as I was with Kid, I still trusted him when it came to protecting members of his crew, so I did as he instructed, backing away a few paces. Extending his new arm, I felt the air begin to prickle with that familiar energy whenever he used his devil fruit, and I was glad to have stepped back when chunks of metal and gears began to fly towards him from each and every direction.

One by one, piece by piece, they all found their chosen place upon his prosthesis, and I couldn't help but watch in awe as I realised exactly what he was doing. He was building a god-damned cannon.
"Woah...You have been busy..." I muttered under my breath as the final piece to his makeshift weapon clicked into place.

The high-pitched whirr that pierced through the air hurt my ears a little, but I was too busy gawking to cover them as I watched. It all happened too quickly to really comprehend well, but I saw a build up of light, a bright flash, and then it was followed by a loud bang, the ship rocking backwards in the tide as a beam shot straight towards the Naval ship.

Utter annihilation. It was like a seaborne fireworks show as it exploded into flaming pieces, members of its crew trying to dive into the ocean to save their lives. The rush of hot air from the shock wave blew through my hair, and my jaw just hung loose and open.

That was...

"OI, YOU GOOD, KILLER?!" Kid's cannon disassembled almost as quickly as it had been crafted, and he shouted over the distance to the island where Killer continued to slash and maim.
"GOT IT COVERED! I'LL MEET YOU GUYS FURTHER OUT IN A BIT!" There was an almost excited tone to Killer's response. It was likely due to finally seeing his best friend again after so long, or perhaps being able to do what he did best once more.

I didn't exactly like the idea of leaving him to fend for himself, but I wouldn't try to argue against his choice. If he wanted to go buckwild and slay a barrage of Marines, then who was I to tell him no?

"(Y/N)!" There was another wet squelch that came from me as I was lifted into another pair of arms, both organic this time, and the tightness of the sudden embrace wrung a whole lot of water out of my clothing and onto the deck. "We missed you so much!"

I pressed my face into silvery locks as I returned Heat's hug, using both my arms and legs to wrap his form.
"I missed you too!" I laughed, already feeling myself getting too emotional. Truly, I had missed my crew. My found family. It was almost overwhelming now that I was back on the Victoria Punk.

Setting my down, Heat gasped, holding up his hands before turning to skitter off.
"Oh, you wait right there! I need to get the baby!" He announced, and his arms were replaced by several other pairs.
"Never leave again!"

"(Y/N) is back! (Y/N) is back!"

"Holy shit, you got jacked!"

I welcomed the affection from Wire, Boogie Haikei and the rest of my favourite people, though I was hyper aware of the looming presence I had once been hoping to avoid for the rest of my life. Kid approached, somehow both confidently and cautiously, until he stood a foot or so away, the crowd around me dispersing.

"So, are you coming back, or are we just giving you a lift to the next island..?" His question held a lot of weight to it. Not just because of the words, but the tone in which he had asked. Did he want me to stay? Could we actually function as captain and crew member after everything that had transpired?

Killer said it was up to me...but I can't tear him away from where he belongs...

"If you're so desperate for my shooting skills, then I guess I can stick around..." I replied with a forced smirk, the tension between us rising by the second. He returned in kind; the tight stretch of his lips proof enough that it wasn't entirely genuine amusement.
"I suppose I can find a place for ya."

This is going to be rough.

My attention was again torn from Kid when Heat returned, carrying a gelatinous glob in his arms.
"Look, Missy! It's your Mama! She's home!" He held the questionable cat out towards me, and I squealed in delight, sprinting and slipping until I had him in my arms.

"My sweet angel baby diddums smoopy woopy googly bear!" I cooed excitedly, hugging the feline close to my chest. "Oh, Mama has missed you, baby boy! Have you been good?! Have you had fun with Uncle Heat?!" Missile Launcher gurgled and wheezed out his unique genre of a purr as he all but tried to smash his entire head inside of my mouth when I kissed him.

"He's been an absolute gem!" Heat sounded like a proud parent, happily watching our reunion with his stitched version of a smile. As I nuzzled into the fleshy clump of what was my cat, I felt a tug on the soggy hem of my shirt, peering down to find...a little girl?

She had vibrant green pigtails, and a bright, sharp-toothed grin as she looked up at me.
"We haven't met! I'm Dive! We heard a lot about you!" She introduced herself, motioning over her shoulder. I followed her chin to find several new faces, and I was almost shocked to find that four other women stood off to the side, giving me a wave.

New members? I'm not gonna be the only girl on the crew anymore..?

"Oh my god, I'm actually going to cry, what the fuck?" I broke out into a wider grin, rushing over to meet them. Sure, being the only woman on a crew of punky men was great and all, and whilst I wasn't super great at getting along with members of my own gender, I was extatic.

Dive, Quincy, Hip, Hop and Emma were their names, and they each seemed like they very much belonged to the Kid Pirates. From our introductions, they definitely had heard a lot about me, and I wondered whether that had been from the guys, or Kid specifically. It wasn't the time to pry, but I made a mental note to ask later on once things had settled down.

We made anchor a few miles out, once Water 7 was just a speck in the distance, and I found myself pulling away from everybody, making my way down with Missy into the Victoria's golden maw.

This was a lot. One moment I was living a calm, normal life in my hometown. Working a legitimate job, living with my partner, terrorising my big brother, and now, once again, I was back on the open sea, with new and old friends, and the man I had sworn I wished to forget.

I was neither happy or sad about it. I was more confused than anything else. The fact that I likely wouldn't ever be able to return to Water 7 made my guts twist, however, and I found myself staring out towards the speck of my home, waiting for a sign of Killer's arrival.

"He won't take long." Kid's voice from behind me made me jump a little, earning an annoyed grumble from Missy, who was gumming at my now drying shoulder. I spared him a quick glance before looking back out over the water, humming my acknowledgement.

"The new arm is pretty sick. Was that what you were working on in your workshop before we left?" I asked, already knowing that to be the case. It was his turn to hum, staying behind me and likely leaning on the inner frame of the figurehead.

"It was. Took a while to get it workin', but I got there in the end. Still have a few kinks to iron out, but it does the trick." Yeah, this was going to be insanely awkward. There was a thick tension between us already, and knowing how we were, it would only get worse.

Just try not to think about it.

"You literally turned yourself into a cannon. I think it does more than just the trick." I scoffed, trying to laugh, but it probably sounded like I was in some kind of pain. I was, in a way. This royally sucked. There was a long quiet after that, broken only by the slight whistle of wind between Victoria's pointed teeth. Even Missy found it to be too much to bear, wriggling his way out from my arms and waddling away from the friction.

"We, uh, met the girls not too long after you guys left. What do ya think of 'em?" Small talk had never suited Eustass Kid, but I could at least somewhat appreciate that he wasn't being a colossal dick.
"I like them. I mean, we've barely said five words to each other, but they seem cool. Less of a sausage fest, at least."

This is actually torture. I can't even look at him.

Why was Killer taking so long? What if something had gone wrong? I had the utmost faith in him, and his abilities, but that didn't mean I wasn't going to worry.
"Why didn't you call for backup about that Marine twerp if he was causing that much trouble?" Kid asked after a while, and I could hear the faint creak of his new arm as he flexed it slightly.

"I didn't expect him to go from desperate dweeb to government whistle-blower in five seconds flat." I rolled my eyes, scuffing the toe of my shoe against the wooden decking. "I can't just go calling for help every time there's a minor inconvenie-"

"Yeah, ya can." I finally turned to look at him directly, and it was a strange sight. There was almost a kind of worry etched upon Kid's usually pinched features, and he seemed to be struggling to maintain eye contact, just as I was. "That's the whole point of bein' part of a crew. Your back's always covered."

I was about to respond; with what? No idea, but I was quickly distracted by a sharp whistle. Turning back to the tides, I finally spotted the golden mass that was Sodom, swimming towards the Victoria Punk. Spinning on my heel, I rushed up to the main deck, Haikei having to scruff me so I didn't throw myself overboard when I hit the railing.

"KILLER!"

"MAN, IT'S BEEN LIKE FORTY YEARS!"

"YOU TANKED UP!"

"THANK GOD, I COULDN'T COPE ANOTHER DAY WITH POMP'S COOKING!"

"OI! FUCK YOU?!"

"LOOK IT'S PRUDE GUY, TOO!"

The second Killer's boots hit the deck I rushed to him, hands hovering as I checked him over from any injuries. He was now wearing his helmet again, which was going to take some getting used to again, but he seemed perfectly fine, albeit a little sweaty.

"Killer! Sight for sore fuckin' eyes! Get in here!" I quickly scurried to the side when Kid approached his long time best friend, and as they hugged it out, I turned my attention to Paulie, who wad dismounting from Sodom's neck.

"Listen, Pauls, I'm really-" My voice was muffled when he dragged me into an embrace, my nostril catching the open zipper tag on his jacket.
"Shut it, problem child. This wasn't your fault. It sucks, but for once, you didn't cause the issue." He heaved a sigh, refusing to let me go until I pinched at his sides.

Yeah, for once...Mostly...

Sodom leaned down closer, a sack pinched between his teeth, and set it down nearby, whinnying as he turned to nose at my face.
"Thanks, sweetie. This is why you're my favourite blond." I cooed, snorting at Paulie's spluttered scoffs. That joke never got old.

"I grabbed your pistols, your weird Hawkeye fetish hat, and some clothes. Oh, and your transponder snail. There wasn't really much else to grab..." Paulie trailed off, biting harder at the tip of his lit cigar. "Iceberg knows what's up, and I guess I'll let your boss know you're resigning..."

Oh, this sucks. I'm gonna cry.

This was going to be harder than our last goodbye because I knew that, at least for the next few years, I wouldn't be able to return to Water 7. It would be too risky, not just for myself, but for the people I loved. There was even a possibility I'd never be able to see Paulie again.

"Hey, listen, I-" I held my finger up to shush him, closing my eyes to compose myself. I knew full well I was going to end up a blubbering wreck, but if I could hold it back until I was alone, it would be less of a hit to my pride.

"I..I want pictures of your wedding with Guppy...a..and a million more of m..my future nieces and nephews...okay..?" I choked out in a pitch several octaves higher than my usual voice. I was trying to mask with humour, but it wasn't working at all.

Paulie broke down that last, crumbling piece of my dam when he dragged me back into his chest, and I hid away, this time uncaring about how uncomfortable that damn zipper was against my face.
"You...are gonna call me as often as possible, 'k..kay..? You're gonna call, a..and you're gonna keep yourself out of trouble, y'hear me, you little sh..shit..?"

I don't wanna leave you...

"Kip...Killer...You better look after her, right? I mean it. You keep her alive..." I felt one of Paulie's arms leave me for a moment and jostle, likely shaking Killer's hand.
"I swear it. Thank you for everything, Paulie." My partner's voice was level, but I could hear that slight twinge of sadness within it.

"And you..." I didn't need to pull away to tell he was pointing at Kid, disdain likely all over his face. "...You too...You keep her alive too, Eustass...or God help me..." He spoke through his teeth, biting his tongue, much to my relief. Kid didn't respond to him in words, but considering a fight didn't break out, I could only assume he had agreed in some silent manner.

"I love you, P..Paulie..." I whimpered out, my tears having already soaked through his ugly yellow shirt when I finally pulled back, receiving a heavy kiss to my forehead. The smell of cigar smoke lingered. Paulie wasn't fairing much better than I was, his waterline glistening as he held back his own tears.
"I love you too, (Y/N). Every damn second of every damn day. Now, get out of here. B..Before the Marines show up again..."

When Paulie pulled my arms from his form they automatically wrapped around my own body, as though I was holding myself back from chasing after him. Climbing back up onto Sodom, he offered me one final smile before the King Bull turned and began swimming back to Water 7. Back to where I could never quite reach ever again.

I felt a hand settle comfortingly upon my shoulder, but when I tried to turn into Killer for a hug, he put more weight behind it, keeping me from doing so. Looking up at him with confusion, and likely more hurt than I intended to show, I hated that I could no longer see his face.

"It's okay. Take Heat to go find Missy and let it all out. I need to get caught up on some things." He spoke softly, just as he always did to me, but there was something different. A wariness that made my stomach tighten, because it didn't take me long to figure out why.

It was because Kid was right there.

Sucking in a shaky breath, I simply nodded my head and pulled out from under his hand, allowing Heat to curl his arm over my shoulders and lead me away from the main area of the deck to find my cat.

Things aren't going to be easy from here on in...Not with Eustass Kid around...

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***When I first started this I didn't really know there were women on the crew, so I very messily introduced them into the story here xD

Next Time: Step-Son***