Four months had passed since finding Sir Crocodile, and they had been the happiest months of my life.

He had welcomed us under his protection without any kind of hesitation or expecting compensation. In fact, he had insisted upon supporting the both of us so we could save up our berries. Clothing, food, everything we could have needed, Crocodile provided, whether it was by legal means or otherwise.

There had been so much to catch up on, and we often stayed up into the early hours of the morning, swapping stories or recalling fond memories. He'd had a few choice words to say about the way Yonji had treated me when we had first met, and it had taken a few days to get him to stop leering at the poor ex-Vinsmoke

Our relationship had changed, considerably. Before his defeat at the hands of Strawhat Luffy back in Alabasta, Crocodile and I had been, somewhat, romantically entangled. It wasn't a relationship, but it wasn't at all nothing. We loved each other deeply, purely, and whilst that was still true, we had settled into something far more platonic. He was family, always had been, always would be, now just in a different manner, yet again.

Yonji, to my surprise, took a great liking to both Crocodile and Daz. I had feared that his stubborn nature would lead to many tense situations, but he showed them nothing but the utmost respect. If either one of them needed a hand with anything, Yonji would jump at the chance. His blockade against human emotions may have been gone, but he still had all of the other genetic enhancements Judge had provided, which meant he was a major asset.

He was eager to learn things, too. Skills that would help not only himself but me as well, in the future. Often, he would cook dinner with Daz or float about the towns we passed through, seeking knowledge about everything from gardening, building, medicine, whatever he could to ensure that we had the ability to survive in a world outside of the Germa.

I was proud of him. Even if he hadn't been doing his all, I still would be. There was not an ounce of the former Vinsmoke Yonji left in that man. The old him was dead and buried. Occasionally, late at night, he would fret, revealing that he was still scared that one day he would wake up as that person again, back in the Germa Kingdom, under his father's thumb. Each and every time I would press a kiss to his forehead and draw him into my arms, promising him that there was no possible way that it could ever happen.

We were together.

We were safe.

We were free.

We had made it.

"Wh..What is this..?"

I stared at my faint reflection in the small dome of glass, the red and white needle jittering slightly with each movement I made as I held it. There was no mistaking that it was a log pose, but I couldn't understand why it had been handed to me.

"There is an island, a month or so journey from here, called Sphinx. There's a village, hidden away behind a waterfall, untouched by the government." Crocodile explained, sitting across from me at the dining table wearing a neutral expression upon his face.

"Okay..? And..?" I looked between the three of them. Yonji appeared just as confused as I did, a brow quizzically quirked, but both Crocodile and Daz were stoic, as usual. Unreadable.
"You two wanted a safe place, didn't you? There's nowhere safer." The pirate blew a stream of cigar smoke as he talked, and I watched it rise before I looked back down to the log pose.

"But we found you? The whole point of me tracking you down was because you're (Y/N)'s safe place." Yonji explained as his brow furrowed, trying to make sense of it just as I was. It didn't take a genius to realise what was going on, and it made my heart drop down into the pit of my stomach.

"Croc...is this your way of saying you don't want us here..?" It hurt to say, and when he didn't respond it felt infinitely worse. To anybody else he would have looked cold. Cruel, even, but I knew him better than anyone. I could see in his eyes that this hadn't been an easy choice for him to make.

"Germa double six was sighted east of here recently. Ten days out, give or take." Daz spoke up, and the pair of us became rigid at the mention of that dreaded name. They were close. Too close. Had they managed to track us down, or was this just a horrendous coincidence? Either way, we were in danger.

"Can...I speak with Croc alone for a moment..?" I turned to Yonji, and he gave my hand a tight squeeze under the table before standing, Daz following him as he left the room quietly. Once they were gone, I turned my attention back to Crocodile. "Isn't there some other way we can stay together..?"

I don't want to lose you again...

His heavy sigh was visible in another cloud of smoke, and I could hear his hook clacking against the underside of the table as he fidgeted in his lap.
"Not without risking all of our lives. Believe me, this isn't something I want to do." He replied, voice much softer now that it was just us. "I'm strong, but as I am now, I'm no match for Germa. Sphinx is the best chance you have at a normal life."

Normal. That was a word I was coming to detest. What even was considered normal? Yonji sometimes asked if certain feelings or actions were 'normal', but who decided what was or wasn't? Why did normalcy have to mean sacrifice in this case, and so many others?

"If we go to this place...then it's likely I'll never see you again, isn't it..?" There was a quaver to my voice when I asked him that question, and he cast his gaze away upon hearing it.
"Yes. It would likely be the case..."

How can Judge still be messing with our lives, even from such a distance? I hate him.

"Then I don't-"
"You talk as though this was a suggestion. I am telling you right now that you are no longer welcome at my side, (Y/N)." Crocodile cut me off, and it felt like a physical slash to my chest. "If you are as loyal to me as you always insisted you were, then you and that man of yours will pack your things, board the ship I have provided, and l..leave for Sphinx by sundown."

I caught that one minuscule stammer, and I was on my feet in a second, launching myself over the table to throw my arms around his neck, face pressing hard into the fur collar of his coat.
"I s..still need you..!" I whimpered through hot, fresh tears, and it only got harder to accept when he curled his arms around me, scooting his chair back so I could sit in his lap.

"Hardly. I was never good for you in the first place, you silly girl..." He murmured against the side of my head, his hand stroking my hair gently, just like it always had. "What you and that boy need most is to stay together, and to stay alive. You can only do that if you leave. Now."

But...

Pulling back, I studied his face closely. His dark, earnest eyes, the scar that sectioned his skin, and the expression of pained urgency he so expertly tried to hide. There wasn't any other choice. My fist clenched the pin-striped material of his shirt as I tried to choke back a sob, nodding my acceptance despite it being the last thing I wanted to do.
"Okay...We'll go to Sphinx..."

Relief flashed across Crocodile's features when I agreed, and he let his head fall forward, just enough so his forehead rested against mine.
"Good. You two can live a good life there. You deserve it, after everything you've both been through." He spoke softly as he nudged me, just a little, and I didn't mind the rich smoke from his cigar that partially wafted into my face.

"You could always just...come with us..?" There was no point in me asking, I knew that, but I couldn't stop myself.
"You know I can't do that..." He pulled me into him again, and I realised that this was it. After today, the chances of ever seeing Sir Crocodile again were slim to none.

"I love you, Croc..." I whispered against the warm skin of his neck, feeling his arms curl tighter around me. So tight that it was close to painful, but I held him back just as tightly, if not more, for the final time.

"I love you too, sweetheart..."

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***I swear I didn't forget about this, I was just dying from being an adult.

Next Time: Sphinx***